On July 10, 2024, the Biden Administration announced tariff increases on imports of aluminum and steel products. The tariff increases are the latest measure to combat the circumvention of Section 301 duties imposed against Chinese origin products by shipping the products through third countries.
The modifications apply to goods entered or withdrawn for consumption
On February 24, 2023, the Biden Administration announced the imposition of additional tariffs on Russian imports of aluminum and approximately 100 other individual products. The imposition of these additional tariffs was announced on the one-year anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The White House announced its continued support of Ukraine in a series of actions
According to recent reports, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) has stopped granting export licenses to Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. (“Huawei”).
The U.S. government has long sought to restrict Huawei’s access to advanced U.S. computer chips used to power 5G networks and related technological applications. Under the current export restrictions
On September 16, 2022, the Biden Administration announced the final rule regarding a two-year pause on the imposition of new anticircumvention duties on imports of solar cells and modules from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. This decision was in response to significant opposition from importers of solar panels who have been expressing concerns about the
On December 23, 2021 President Biden signed H.R. 6256, wide-reaching legislation aimed at preventing the importation of goods “mined, produced or manufactured wholly or in part with forced labor” from China, in particular the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (the “XUAR”). See Text – H.R.6256 – 117th Congress (2021-2022): To ensure that goods made with forced labor in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China do not enter the United States market, and for other purposes. | Congress.gov | Library of Congress. The bill specifically references cotton, tomatoes and polysilicon, but in fact covers all types of products as well as manufacturers and even companies involved in the recruitment and transport of workers.
As previously reported, in February 2021, President Biden issued Executive Order 14017 (“EO 14017”), which instructed various government agencies to review the current supply chain risks for critical sectors and subsectors of the Information and Communications Technology (“ICT”) industrial base and provide the executive branch with reports of identified risks. In order to comply with EO 14017, the Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) recently announced that it will host a virtual forum soliciting recommendations from the public on how to strengthen the resiliency of the ICT industrial base. The ICT industrial base consists of:
With the support of the Executive Directors of The Port of Los Angeles (“Port of L.A.”) and the Port of Long Beach, and the President of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, President Biden announced on Wednesday October 13, 2021, after week of negotiations, that the Port of L.A. has agreed to begin operating 24/7. The Port of L.A. will join the Port of Long Beach, which has been running 24/7 for the past several weeks. Together, 40% of the containers imported to the United States go through these two ports.
On October 4, 2021, Ambassador Katherine Tai, the United States Trade Representative, addressed the state of U.S.- China trade relations and the upcoming plans for the Biden Administration to improve foreign trade policy. Since taking office in January, the Administration has spent time reviewing the trade policies put in place under the Trump Administration. There has been little movement until now as to the stance the Biden Administration would take, which created uncertainty regarding U.S. trade policy with China. Speculation grew as many questioned what would happen with the tariffs imposed on Chinese imports (under Section 301), how the administration would address the shortcomings of the “Phase 1” deal, and whether the product exclusion process would be re-instated.
On March 29th, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) announced the suspension of all U.S. engagements with Burma (Myanmar) under the 2013 Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (“TIFA”), effective immediately. Pursuant to this announcement, the United States will be suspending all government-to-government meetings following the military coup that occurred in February and the related escalation in violence by Burma’s military against its people.
Secretary of Commerce Gina M. Raimondo recently announced that the Department of Commerce (“Commerce”) had served subpoenas on multiple Chinese companies that provide information and communications technology and services (“ICTS”) in the United States pursuant to Executive Order 13873 (“EO 13873”). While it is unknown which companies were served or how many, Commerce’s recent action