USA - free trade agreement with S. Korea

July 1, 2007

Dear friends,The US government has signed an extensive free trade agreement with its long time ally South Korea. Foreign trade is represented by H10 and its lord. In the SAMVA USA chart, Mars becomes L10. It is now transiting in the sign of Aries and H10. Moreover, L2 Sun, indicator of status, is transiting H12 of foreign matters with L3 Mercury. When the trade deal was signed, Sun was under exact aspect of Rahu, the planet of diplomacy and manipulation. This act therefore is likely timed and aimed to bring needed lustre to US foreign policy. In the SAMVA USA chart, H7 rules foreign policy and agreements and both Sun and Mercury are placed there natally.With Sun in H12, US President Bush also has plans to meet with Russian President Putin this week. The objective is to improve the political relationship between the two big countries, which has been strained in recent years due to Russias disagreement with the war in Iraq and US concerns about civil

liberties in Russia.One more items of interest with regard to the USA. In January, predicted setbacks for the USA in warfields. This was noticed with both a rise in US military casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan from February to May 2007, when the transit difficulty reached a peak. In June 2007, civilian casualties, mostly due to car bombs in public places, were only one third of the May level. So, the tension in Iraq last month was much less.Best wishes,ThorJune 30, 2007 South Korea, US Sign Free Trade Deal WASHINGTON (AP) - The United States and South Korea signed a free-trade agreement Saturday that reflected U.S. calls for stricter labor and environmental standards. South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong and U.S. Trade

Representative Susan Schwab signed the agreement in Washington, meeting a deadline under President Bush's expiring special trade powers. That "fast track" authority prevents lawmakers from amending the deal before voting on it. The trade deal still needs to be approved by lawmakers in both countries to take effect. Bush said Saturday that the Korean agreement would generate exports for U.S. farmers, ranchers, manufacturers and service suppliers. He urged Congress to ratify the agreement. While the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups applauded the agreement, it faces opposition in Congress. House leaders, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California, say they will not support the agreement as negotiated. The agreement would eliminate and lower tariffs and other trade barriers in a wide range of industrial goods and services, including automobiles, agricultural products and financial services. South Korea

also agreed to change its tax system for larger vehicles, which the U.S. contended was discriminatory. South Korea currently sells more than 700,000 vehicles a year in the United States, while U.S. makers sell about 5,000 in South Korea. South Korea is the United States' seventh-largest trade partner. Bilateral trade between the two countries last year reached $78 billion. The two countries concluded the free-trade agreement in April after 10 months of tough negotiations, only to have it hung up over last-minute amendments requested by Washington. The amendments incorporate stricter labor and environmental guidelines set by the new Democratic majority in Congress for free trade deals. The U.S. also concluded free trade deals with Colombia, Panama and Peru ahead of Saturday's deadline. --

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