WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) – The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday approved long-delayed trade pacts with South Korea, Colombia and Panama that are expected to lift exports by about $13 billion a year, clearing the way for the Senate to give a final stamp of approval.

Republicans and Democrats joined together to pass the pacts, with the Colombia deal receiving the least support. The Senate is expected to pass the deals later on Wednesday.

Supporters hope the action marks an end to a long U.S. drought on deals to open trade. Each pact had been stuck at the White House for at least four years.

“We will send a strong signal to the world that America is back on the trade field,” said Representative Kevin Brady, a Texas Republican, at a rally with business groups.

U.S. farm and manufactured goods exports are expected to rise under the agreements as tariffs are phased out. The pacts also open new markets for U.S. companies in service sectors such as banking, insurance and express delivery.

Critics such as Senator Sherrod Brown said the deals will harm U.S. employment, but the Obama administration and other proponents think they will support tens of thousands jobs.

Brown, an Ohio Democrat, urged Obama to turn away from “NAFTA-style” agreements like the three deals and change trade policy to “put American manufacturers and workers first.”

WASHINGTON, Oct 12 (Reuters) – The U.S. Congress was poised on Wednesday to approve long-delayed trade pacts with South Korea, Colombia and Panama that are expected to create U.S. jobs by boosting exports by about $13 billion a year.

The House of Representatives and Senate are expected to back the deals in a series of votes later on Wednesday.

Supporters hope the action marks an end to a long U.S. drought on deals to open trade. Each pact had been stuck at the White House for at least four years.

“We will send a strong signal to the world that America is back on the trade field,” said Representative Kevin Brady, a Texas Republican, at a rally with business groups.

U.S. farm and manufactured goods exports are expected to rise under all three agreements as tariffs are phased out. The agreements also open new markets for U.S. companies in service sectors such as banking, insurance and express delivery.

Critics say the pacts will harm U.S. employment, but the Obama administration and other proponents think the pacts will support tens of thousands jobs.

The biggest gains are expected from the pact with South Korea, a longtime ally and a $1 trillion economy in a region increasingly dominated by China. The agreement will help anchor the United States in the fast-growing Asia Pacific region so it can share in its growth, analysts say.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A Senate panel on Tuesday backed long-delayed trade pacts with South Korea, Colombia and Panama that are expected to boost U.S. exports by about $13 billion a year, paving the way for final approval.

The full Senate and House of Representatives are poised to approve the agreements on Wednesday, just nine days after President Barack Obama sent them to Congress. Obama has said they would help support tens of thousands American jobs.

The panel approved the South Korea and Panama agreements on voice votes and the Colombia pact by a 18-6 vote.

U.S. farm and manufactured goods exports are expected to rise under all three agreements as tariffs are phased out, with the biggest gains coming from the South Korea agreement. The deals also open new markets for U.S. companies in service sectors such as banking, insurance and express delivery.

The deals “will give our ranchers, farmers, workers and businesses a competitive edge in three lucrative fast-growing markets,” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus said.

The speed at which the deals have moved through Congress contrasts with the four to five years they were stuck at the White House because of mostly Democratic Party concerns.

Senator Orrin Hatch, the top Republican on the panel, said the long period of inaction had “weakened” U.S. leadership in global trade and “led many to doubt whether the United States remains serious about addressing the world’s and its own economic challenges.”

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Three long-delayed free-trade agreements expected to provide tens of thousands of jobs and boost U.S. exports by about $13 billion a year are close to final congressional approval just 10 days after the White House sent them to Congress.

The Senate Finance Committee is expected to back the deals with South Korea, Panama and Colombia on Tuesday afternoon, clearing the way for votes in both the full House of Representatives and Senate on Wednesday.

The speed at which the trade agreements are moving through Congress contrasts with the four to five years they were stuck at the White House because of mostly Democratic Party concerns.

Senator Rob Portman, an Ohio Republican and former U.S. trade representative, told Reuters the sprint toward final congressional approval was appropriate after the years of delay and months of political maneuvering that led to President Barack Obama submitting the agreements to Congress on October 3.

“It’s good for the economy at a time when we’re having a hard time agreeing on anything here in Washington,” Portman said. “But, second, I do think it sends an important signal to the world that America is moving forward.”

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will speak to a joint session of the Congress on Thursday before heading to a state dinner at the White House, giving lawmakers another incentive for fast action on the pacts.

House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer told reporters on Tuesday he expected all three agreements to pass with bipartisan support. However, opponents say they expect more than half of House Democrats to go against Obama and vote against the deals.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama accused China on Thursday of “gaming” international trade by keeping its currency weak, but was cautious about a bill before the Senate aimed at pressing Beijing to revalue the yuan.

The legislation, which calls for U.S. tariffs on imports from countries with deliberately undervalued currencies, will head toward a final Senate vote on Tuesday after efforts to bring action to a close faltered on Thursday.

Obama stopped short of explicitly backing the legislation and he restated concerns that any measure must comply with global trade rules. Still, in his toughest language on China to date, the president echoed the sponsors of the bill.

The measure, which has drawn warnings from Beijing that it could trigger a trade war, is still widely expected to pass.

“China has been very aggressive in gaming the trading system to its advantage and to the disadvantage of other countries, particularly the United States,” Obama told a news conference focused on his bid to revive a weak U.S. economy.

“Currency manipulation is one example of it,” he said.

Obama, who faces a tough bid for re-election next year, did not say whether he would sign or veto the legislation if it reached his desk. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives would have to approve the measure first.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama accused China on Thursday of “gaming” international trade by keeping its currency weak, as legislation to press Beijing to revalue the yuan cleared a hurdle in the Senate.

Obama stopped short of explicitly endorsing the bill, which calls for U.S. tariffs on imports from countries with deliberately undervalued currencies, and restated White House concerns that any measure must comply with global trade rules.

But the president’s tough language echoed sponsors of the bill, which narrowly cleared a hurdle to limit debate and set the clock ticking for a final vote, which could come later on Thursday. The measure, which has drawn warnings from Beijing that it could trigger a trade war, is widely expected to pass.

“China has been very aggressive in gaming the trading system to its advantage and to the disadvantage of other countries, particularly the United States,” Obama told a news conference focused on his bid to revive a weak U.S. economy.

“Currency manipulation is one example of it,” he said.

Obama spoke just after the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act of 2011 passed a “cloture” vote in the Senate by a margin of 62-38 — two votes more than the minimum required and an erosion of support from a 79-19 vote on Monday.

Supporters say the latest vote virtually guarantees the Senate will approve the measure, but the bill faces stronger opposition in the House of Representatives.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. legislation to press China to revalue its currency narrowly cleared a Senate procedural vote before a formal vote later on Thursday but it faced stronger opposition in the House of Representatives.

The bill passed a “cloture” vote ending debate by a margin of 62-38 — two votes more than the minimum required support of 60 and an erosion of support from a 79-19 vote on Monday.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said after the vote he hoped to finish action on the bill later in the day.

The Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act of 2011, is the newest version of nearly annual legislative efforts to pressure China on currency policy since 2005.

It has gained support from many lawmakers alarmed at high unemployment ahead of U.S. elections in 2012.

But it has drawn warnings from Beijing that it could trigger a trade war, and the White House voiced concern the measure, which calls for U.S. duties on imports from countries with deliberately undervalued currencies might conflict with international trade rules.

A Senate vote to pass the bill later on Thursday would send the bill to the Republican-controlled House.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. legislation designed to get China to revalue its currency hit a snag on Thursday as the Democratic leader of the Senate said wavering support from the Republicans could force lawmakers to drop the bill.

The bill calling for U.S. tariffs on imports from countries with deliberately undervalued currencies had gained support from many lawmakers alarmed at high unemployment ahead of 2012 elections. But it has drawn warnings from Beijing that it could trigger a trade war, and the White House voiced concern the measure might go against international trade rules.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he was worried that Republican support for the legislation could be wavering four days after a robust bi-partisan vote of 79-19 in favor of starting action on the bill.

“It’s difficult for me to understand (how) people could be switching their votes from Monday to Thursday,” said Reid as the legislative drive bogged down in a dispute over amendments to the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act of 2011.

“The people who are opposing this legislation are probably doing business in China and they are afraid of offending the Chinese,” said Senator Lindsey Graham, a Republican who is a co-sponsor of the legislation.

Reid said he still hoped the Senate would pass the bill before the weekend, but warned that work on the legislation would end if it fails to clear a “cloture” vote — a key procedural step on Thursday morning.

“If cloture’s not invoked, of course, that ends it, which would be a sad day, I think, in the relations between the United States and China, to think that we capitulated in something as important as this,” Reid said.

WASHINGTON, Oct 5 (Reuters) – A U.S. congressional committee on Wednesday strongly backed deals with South Korea, Colombia and Panama, setting them on course for expected final approval and ending years of trade policy paralysis.

The three pacts are expected to boost U.S. exports by about $13 billion, which President Barack Obama’s administration estimates will help create tens of thousands of jobs.

The congressional action follows years of delay during which the European Union, Canada and the three potential new U.S. free trade partners themselves have all moved aggressively to strike new market-opening pacts.

The panel’s chairman, Representative Dave Camp, said approval of the deals could not come at a better time for the struggling U.S. economy.

“With zero jobs created last month and the unemployment rate hovering above nine percent, we must look at all opportunities to create American jobs,” Camp said.

The three pacts must be approved by the full House and the Senate to become law. The panel backed the pacts on the following bipartisan votes: Colombia, 24-12; Panama, 32-3; and South Korea, 31-5.

Camp said he expected the full House to approve the trade deals next week. The Senate also could move quickly enough for the pacts to be approved in time for South Korean President Lee Myung-Bak’s visit to the White House on Oct 13.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A congressional committee on Wednesday backed deals with Colombia and Panama, setting them on course for expected final approval and ending a lengthy trade policy paralysis.

The panel was expected to approve a third deal with South Korea within the next hour or so.

The three pacts are expected to boost U.S. exports by about $13 billion, which President Barack Obama’s administration estimates will help create tens of thousands of jobs.

But congressional action follows years of delay during which the European Union, Canada and the three potential new U.S. free trade partners themselves have moved aggressively to strike new market-opening pacts.

The panel’s chairman, Representative Dave Camp, said approval of the deals could not come at a better time.

“With zero jobs created last month and the unemployment rate hovering above nine percent, we must look at all opportunities to create American jobs. These agreements do just that,” Camp said.

The three pacts must be approved by the full House and the Senate to become law.