USMCA

The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Sept 16. The following headquarters rulings were modified recently, according to CBP:

High tech goods from China that are eligible for USMCA treatment remain subject to applicable Section 301 tariffs, CBP said in a Sept. 11 ruling. The ruling is a follow-up to a ruling in August that addressed a question of whether goods that originate in China and imported from Mexico are eligible for USMCA treatment (see 2008110037). While CBP in the previous ruling said that such goods are eligible for USMCA treatment, the agency didn't say then whether the Section 301 tariffs would apply.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Sept. 8-11 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

The advance notice of proposed rulemaking on continuing education for licensed brokers is currently circulating in CBP for review, said CBP Deputy Commissioner Robert Perez. Perez was speaking at an online conference of the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America on Sept. 14. He did not say what kind of mandatory requirements would be part of the plan, but said that it will include a methodology for approving education accreditors, and said that the agency has “taken into account the excellent feedback from you and other trade stakeholders.” The NCBFAA supports mandatory continuing education, but has been concerned about the details (see 2002130025).

Mexican companies are finding they have less time to reform their union relationships than they had thought, and U.S. firms that contract with companies in aerospace, aerospace, auto and auto parts, cosmetics, industrial baked goods, steel, aluminum, glass, pottery, plastic, forgings, cement and mining sectors should be doing due diligence to learn what the plan is to come into compliance. The head of the AFL-CIO recently said they are planning to file a complaint within the month (see 2009040052).

The USMCA technical corrections bill seems to have stalled out on the Hill, as Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said at a meeting a month ago, he was seeing there was not unanimity among Democrats, and without that, it cannot be done quickly. A Senate Finance Committee spokesman said, “The bottom line is that it’s not clear to us whether certain Democrat senators who voted against USMCA would hold up technical corrections should a package come up for a unanimous consent vote.”

The multifront tariff war hurts American consumers and businesses, as well as America's standing in the world, argues Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a moderate Democrat from Florida who serves on the Trade Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee. Murphy, who was interviewed during an online event hosted by the Washington International Trade Association Sept. 9, said she believes returning to 10% tariffs on some categories of Canadian aluminum undermines U.S. credibility in trade.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Aug. 31-Sept. 4 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

More than 80% of the comments submitted on USMCA product rule of origin were requests or demands for country-of-origin labeling (COOL) for beef, something that is not part of the treaty.

The International Trade Commission will begin an investigation on whether imports of blueberries from Mexico, Chile, Peru, Chile, Canada and Argentina are damaging domestic growers. The ITC will have until Dec. 30 to determine whether there is serious injury, and increased imports are at least as important as any other cause. According to the ITC, the injury requirement is considered to be more difficult than the one in antidumping and countervailing duty laws. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative requested the investigation -- only the second time USTR has initiated a safeguard investigation in 25 years -- and is also laying the groundwork for potential investigations into strawberries and bell peppers.