U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk, President Obama's top trade adviser, will tour New Balance's factory in Maine to discuss a proposed free trade agreement with eight Pacific Rim companies and its impact on American-made shoes, according to the Boston Herald.
The visit on Thursday September 13 to the Norridgewock, ME factory stems from an invitation extended during New Balance's 'Made in America Footwear Day' on Capitol Hill in July.
New Balance has been lobbying lawmakers to maintain a U.S. tariff on shoe imports from Vietnam, where production and labor costs are significantly lower than in the United States, in particular.
