U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) issued a Federal Register notice that it is now ready to execute “executing enhanced enforcement procedures.”  CBP has indicated that it will start verifying importer of record information provided by each importer on CBP Form 5106, and importers of record have until September 18, 2026, to correct any errors…

cargo ship in panama canal

In response to rapidly developing El Niño conditions, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) has reduced maximum vessel draft limits. The situation may get worse next year, so shippers with Canal-dependent trade lanes should take mitigating steps now before conditions deteriorate further.

The ACP has already imposed five successive draft reductions as vessel backlogs continue to…

White House

On August 13, 2026, the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy released a report identifying more than 40 countries it characterizes as presenting an elevated risk of illegal transshipment of Chinese-origin goods into the United States. The report also states that an artificial-intelligence-driven enforcement tool, referred to as “Detective Border,” is under development to support U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in detecting and interdicting such shipments.

Since the May 2026 Supreme Court decision in Montgomery v. Caribe Transport II, LLC, four federal district courts have taken up the question of whether its safety exception applies to cargo theft claims, and they have all decided no.

Taken together, these decisions reflect a shared rationale that cargo theft amounts to “deception-induced deprivation…

In Husch Blackwell’s July 2026 Trade Law Update you’ll learn about the following updates in international trade and supply chain law:

  • An update on U.S. Department of Commerce decisions
  • U.S. International Trade Commission – Section 701/731 proceedings
  • Customs and Border Protection case summaries
  • Summary of decisions from the Court of International Trade

Should you have…

Antibodies.

The Trump Administration has officially reduced tariffs on patented pharmaceuticals and associated pharmaceutical ingredients imported from the United Kingdom (UK) from 10% to 0%. This change, effective July 31, 2026, is the result of an agreement between the United States and the UK, which created a carve out for UK origin pharmaceutical products from the recent national security tariffs imposed on patented pharmaceuticals pursuant to Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (Section 232).

On August 4, 2026 the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published a notice seeking public comments on expanding tariffs applicable to certain steel, aluminum and copper derivative products under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (Section 232) to fourteen (14) additional derivative products.

The list of products proposed to be subject…

Court of International Trade

On August 3, 2026, the state attorney generals of twenty-five states (25) co-led by State of Oregon, Arizona and California filed a complaint in the Court of International Trade (CIT) challenging tariffs imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 (Section 301) to address forced labor. The complaint alleges that Section 301 forced labor tariffs are ultra vires, arbitrary, capricious and contrary to law.

This complaint by the 25 state attorney generals challenging the legality of the Section 301 forced labor tariffs, joins other lawsuits pending before the CIT that were filed by small business plaintiffs, Burlap and Barrel, Inc. and Collective Horology LLC.

On July 31, 2026, President Trump issued proclamation “To Facilitate Positive Adjustment to Competition From Imports of Quartz Surface Products,” introducing a tariff-rate quota (“TRQ”) that will go into effect on August 15, 2026 on imports of certain quartz surface products under Section 203 of the Trade Act. The action follows a recommendation from the International Trade Commission in May 2026, which found that increased import volumes of quartz are harming the domestic quartz industry.