The Untied States Trade Representive is accusing China and Russia of flooding the global marketplace with counterfeit and pirated goods

From AFP:

The United States on Friday named China and Russia as among the worst protectors of intellectual property rights, flooding global trade with counterfeit items such as DVDs, designer bags, medicines and software.

In an annual report on intellectual property rights protection, the US Trade Representative’s office singled out China and Russia for allegedly failing to respect US patents and copyrights.

The Special 301 Report, named after the section of US law on which it is based, spotlights “one of the central challenges facing the global economy,” US Trade Representative Susan Schwab said.

“Pirates and counterfeiters don’t just steal ideas; they steal jobs, and too often they threaten our health and safety,” the top US trade official said.

The report said US authorities still see “serious” concerns with respect to China and Russia, in spite of some evidence of improvement in both countries.

Globally, counterfeit goods is a $533 billion market.