tariffs

Late Friday, May 31, 2019, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”) announced that they would extend the time frame for the application of increased tariffs on shipments of goods exported from China prior to May 10, 2019.   The increase from 10% to 25% in duties was announced on May 8th and was set to be applicable on all imports starting on June 1, 2019.   The USTR has now revised its earlier announcement and has stated that shipments must be entered before midnight on June 15, 2019 in order to remain subject to the 10% duty rate.  Any entries after midnight on June 15, 2019 will be subject to the increased rate of 25% announced on May 8, 2019.

Key Facts:

  • President Trump is imposing tariffs on all imported goods from Mexico beginning on June 10, 2019
  • The tariff rate will begin at 5% and increase to 10% on July 1, 15% on August 1, 20% on September 1, and 25% on October 1, 2019.
  • The tariffs will remain at 25% until “Mexico substantially stops the illegal inflow of aliens coming through its territory”

On May 30, 2019, President Trump announced that he would impose tariffs on all imported goods from Mexico beginning on June 10, 2019 at a 5% duty rate and increasing an additional 5% each month for three months.

On May 13, 2019, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) released another round of proposed tariffs on Chinese goods worth roughly $325 billion. If these new tariffs come into effect, this would be the fourth round of tariffs in the ongoing and escalating trade war between the two countries. This proposed list of new tariffs came in response to China’s retaliatory tariff increase on $60 billion worth of U.S. products which was in response to the U.S.’s sudden and unprecedented increase of tariffs to 25% on the third round of Section 301 goods which had been in effect since September 24, 2018.

On May 8, 2019, USTR released its federal register notice on the sudden tariff increase on the third tranche (List 3) Section 301 tariffs on China. The duty rate on the estimated $200 billion worth of Chinese products will increase from 10% to 25% effective 12:01am ET on Friday, May 10, 2019. The notice also announces that an exclusion process will be instituted for these products in a separate notice.

On Monday, May 6, 2019, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer piggybacking on the President’s tweet announced that the tariff rate on the third tranche (List 3) of Section 301 tariffs would be increased from 10% to 25% at 12:01am on May 10, 2019. Robert Lighthizer issued a statement that USTR plans to release a draft federal register notice on the tariffs today; however, nothing further has been published or announced in the Federal Register for Tuesday May 7, 2019.

On Sunday, May 5, 2019, President Trump announced via Twitter that the tariff rate on the third tranche (List 3) of Section 301 tariffs would be increasing from 10% to 25% on Friday, May 10, 2019. According to the tweet, the reason for the increase is that the trade deal negotiations are moving “too slowly” and China’s attempt to “renegotiate.”

In the tweet the President also stated that an additional $325 billion dollars’ worth of goods “will be shortly” taxed at a rate of 25%.