Commerce Dept.

The Time to Vote on the U.S. Colombia Free Trade Agreement Is Now

WASHINGTON, Sunday, July 20, 2008 — U.S. Secretary of Commerce Carlos M. Gutierrez issued the following statement on the occasion of Colombia’s Independence Day with a call to Congress to schedule a vote on the U.S.-Colombia Free Trade Agreement:

“Freedom and democracy go hand in hand. As our nation celebrates with our Colombian friends and allies on their independence day, we reflect on the remarkable progress that they have made toward stability, social justice and peace. These are developments that all Americans should be proud to support. When Colombia is strong, secure and prosperous, so is the Western Hemisphere.    » read more »

Washington, Feb. 26, 2008 — U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez and Czech Republic Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek met to discuss bilateral trade. Following the meeting they held a press conference to highlight the plight of the Cuban people, with whom the Czech people stand in solidarity as a nation that has made a successful transition from what Gutierrez called the “tyranny of communism” to democracy. Gutierrez is pictured giving Topolanek a bracelet imprinted with the Spanish word for change, “cambio,” which are worn in solidarity with the Cuban people.    » read more »

Gaithersburg, Md., Feb. 26, 2008 — The Commerce Department’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is hosting the International Workshop on Documentary Standards for Measurement and Characterization in Nanotechnologies February 26-28. Leaders of international standards committees and measurement laboratories from around the world will exchange information to promote the emergence of high-quality, globally relevant international standards for nanotechnology.    » read more »

Washington, Feb. 21, 2008 — Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is co-sponsoring a six-week Southern Ocean gas exchange experiment cruise with scientists from NASA and the National Science Foundation (NFS) to study the movements of gases in order to improve the accuracy of climate models and predictions. Scientists will conduct the experiments aboard the NOAA ship Ronald H. Brown, named for the late Secretary of Commerce killed in a plane crash in 1996.    » read more »

Washington, Feb. 20, 2008 — Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security Mario Mancuso delivered the keynote address, “Technology Leadership, Economic Power and National Security: Dual-Use Export Controls to China,” at the Heritage Foundation. Mancuso addressed how recent changes to our dual-use export control policies toward China fit into a new strategy to ensure safe, secure, technology trade and investment.

Speech below:

“Technology Leadership, Economic Power, and U.S. National Security” U.S. Dual-Use Trade with China

Keynote Address    » read more »

‘Crystal of Light’ Clock Surpasses Accuracy of NIST-F1 Fountain Clock

Feb. 14, 2008, BOULDER, Colo.— A next-generation atomic clock that tops previous records for accuracy in clocks based on neutral atoms has been demonstrated by physicists at JILA, a joint institute of the Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the University of Colorado at Boulder. The new clock, based on thousands of strontium atoms trapped in grids of laser light, surpasses the accuracy of the current U.S. time standard based on a “fountain” of cesium atoms.    » read more »

Bilateral Free Trade Benefits U.S. and Colombian Workers and Businesses

Thursday, February 14, 2008, WASHINGTON ― U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez announced that U.S. exports for 2007 reached record-breaking levels and stressed the need to continue export momentum by opening up new markets and passing the U.S.-Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement. Gutierrez noted that many Colombian goods such as Valentine’s day flowers come to the United States duty free, while U.S. products that support the flower industry face tariffs upon entering the Colombian market.    » read more »