US-Asia Fair Market Alliance launches, urges probe into digital trade practices in Asia

By Tom Joyce
The Center Square

(The Center Square ) – A new policy coalition launched this week, calling on federal officials to investigate what it says is discriminatory treatment of American companies in Asia.

The US-Asia Fair Market Alliance said that it will advocate for predictable, rules-based markets in the Indo-Pacific. It will focus on transparency, equal regulatory treatment, and supply chain resilience for American companies abroad.

“Rules-based trade only works when the rules are clear and the referees are consistent,” Executive Director Matt Mowers said in a press release. “When enforcement turns unpredictable and foreign investors lose confidence supply chains shift in ways that hurt long-term security.”

The coalition said U.S. companies are facing increased pressure in Asian markets. Examples the group cited included regulatory uncertainty in China, data rules in India and Japan, and competition enforcement practices in South Korea.

The group said such policies act as non-tariff barriers, limiting American firms’ ability to compete globally.

The alliance also joined other organizations in signing a letter to U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer and other policymakers. The letter urged them to prioritize digital trade practices in Asia in the upcoming Section 301 investigations.

“The undersigned organizations write to commend the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) for launching Section 301 investigations into the acts, policies, and practices of foreign economies that burden U.S. commerce,” the letter says.

The organizations warned that Asian governments have adopted policies that disproportionately hurt American technology companies.

“A growing number of Asian governments are adopting regulatory frameworks –often modeled on the EU’s Digital Markets Act – that disproportionately burden American technology companies while shielding domestic and Chinese competitors,” the letter says.

The letter cites Japan’s Mobile Software Competition Act, India’s data protection law, China’s data transfer restrictions, and enforcement actions taken in South Korea.

The coalition also called for action.

“We respectfully urge USTR to prioritize discriminatory digital trade practices in Asia in forthcoming Section 301 investigations, with particular attention to South Korea, Japan, India, and China,” the letter says.

The alliance said it will work to educate policymakers and promote policies that help American firms compete on a level playing field.

Organizations that signed the letter include Americans for Tax Reform, the National Taxpayers Union, and the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, among others.