December 2019

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”) announced that it is seeking comments from interested parties on whether or not to extend previously granted Section 301 exclusions for another year.  The List 1 exclusions, which were originally granted on March 25, 2019, are set to expire on March 25, 2020, but USTR is considering…

As we discussed in a recent client alert, the U.S. Department of Commerce recently issued a proposed rule (the “Proposed Rule”) which intends to give the U.S. Secretary of Commerce the authority to block, unwind or modify information and communications technology or services (“ICTS”) transactions involving “foreign adversaries” if the Commerce Secretary determines that such transactions threaten U.S. critical infrastructure, the U.S. digital economy or U.S. national security. There were many aspects of the Proposed Rule which were unclear, but the U.S. Department of Commerce indicated its willingness to consider comments from the public which were received on or before Friday, December 27, 2019.

The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (“the USMCA”) passed the U.S. House of Representatives on December 19, 2019, by a vote of 385 to 41.  In order to be fully ratified by the United States, the USMCA must now be approved by the U.S. Senate, which has a total of up to 30 session days after the House…

On December 19, 2019, Petitioners FEB Fair Trade Coalition, Ellwood Group, and Finkl Steel filed a petition for the imposition of antidumping on imports of Fluid End Blocks from Germany, India, and Italy and countervailing duties on imports of such products from the People’s Republic of China, Germany, India and Italy.

SCOPE OF THE INVESTIGATION…

On December 18, 2019, Petitioner Coalition Against Korean Cigarettes filed a petition for the imposition of antidumping duties on imports of 4th Tier Cigarettes from the Republic of Korea.

SCOPE OF THE INVESTIGATION

The physical characteristics of the covered product, which define the scope, are as follows:

The merchandise covered by this investigation…

On December 12, 2019, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) announced in a Federal Register notice that they are reviewing the action taken as a result of the Large Civil Aircraft dispute with the European Union.  USTR is requesting comments on whether any products currently subject to additional duties should have those…

On December 12, 2019, the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) issued another round of product exclusions pertaining to the 25% Section 301 List 3 Tariffs. The new list of exclusions includes 35 specifically crafted product descriptions that cover 75 separate exclusion requests. To view the full list of excluded products, click here. According to…

After a long period of negotiation, Vice Minister Wang Shouwen of China’s Commerce Ministry announced on December 13, 2019 that the U.S. and China have agreed to “phase one” of an agreement to bring an end to the trade war that has disrupted global supply chains since 2018. China’s confirmation came after President Trump approved…

On December 10, 2019, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi stated in a press conference that Democrats had reached an agreement with the Trump Administration on the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (“USMCA”) intended as a NAFTA update, clearing the way for Congress to vote on the trade agreement.  Speaker Pelosi called the agreement “a victory for America’s workers”…

On December 6, 2019, Commerce announced in the Federal Register the opportunity to request an annual administrative review for products that are currently subject to antidumping and countervailing duties.  As part of this annual review process Commerce intends to select respondents based on U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) data for U.S. imports during the…