The Regional Seminar on Trade Relations between the United States and Latin America and the Caribbean in the first year of the Obama Administration was held in March 2010 within the framework of SELA. In order to support the debates during the seminar, the Permanent Secretariat prepared and forwarded to its Member States the document titled “U.S. Trade Policy under the Obama Administration: Implications for SELA Member States” (SP/SRRC-EE.UU-ALC-PAAO/DT No. 2 – 10).

In their conclusions and recommendations, the Member States stated that it was necessary for SELA to continue with the analysis on the economic relations between Latin America and the Caribbean and the U.S., and to evaluate the possible implications of the U.S. economic policy decisions on the Latin American and Caribbean nations. In addition, the Member States urged the Permanent Secretariat to continue with its analyses and proposals on the regional economic agenda with the United States.

With the “SELA Antenna in the United States”, which has been published for 20 years in Spanish and English on a quarterly basis, the Permanent Secretariat has provided detailed reports on the facts and trade policy and measures implemented by the United States and their effects on foreign trade of the countries of the region. This publication also includes monitoring of the main decisions and actions of the U.S. Administration and Congress as regards international economic and trade issues of interest to Latin America and the Caribbean.

In the latest Latin American Council, the representatives of SELA’s Member States approved the Work Programme of the organization for 2011. Following the recommendations made during the past seminar, the Work Programme foresees the conduction of a Regional Seminar to assess and discuss the dynamics of the economic relations between the U.S. and LAC in the first two years of the Obama Administration.