The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative seeks comments in connection with its annual review of the eligibility of countries for benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), USTR said. The agency will consider, among other things, whether to restore or revoke eligibility for sub-Saharan African countries covered by AGOA. Countries found ineligible for AGOA in 2019 include Burundi; Democratic Republic of Congo; Equatorial Guinea (graduated from GSP); Eritrea; Mauritania; Seychelles (graduated from GSP); Somalia; South Sudan; Sudan; and Zimbabwe. USTR will hold a public hearing on Aug. 27, and the deadline to file requests to testify there or to file any prehearing comments is noon on Aug. 14. Sept. 3 is the final deadline for comments.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced country-by-country reallocations of unused fiscal year 2019 in-quota amounts for the tariff-rate quotas for imported raw cane sugar.. Reallocated quantities are as follows:
The “same concerns” that led the Trump administration to remove smartwatches and fitness trackers from the List 3 Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports in September “continue to apply” with the proposed fourth tranche, commented Fitbit in docket USTR-2019-0004. Imposing 25 percent tariffs would cause Fitbit “significant and unavoidable economic harm," it commented.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative created a new site meant to help importers navigate the Section 301 tariff process. The page describes some basics of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule, and has an HTS number search feature to help determine if a product is subject to the tariffs.
The Office of Management and Budget Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs approved a new information collection requested by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative in order to begin the exclusion process for goods from China in the third tranche of Section 301 tariffs. OIRA approved the new form on June 14 after USTR sought an "emergency" review that allowed for expedited treatment, according to OIRA's page on the form. USTR requested the new information collection last month and said it planned to begin taking requests by around June 30 (see 1905210048).
Public hearings that begin June 17 on the proposed List 4 Section 301 tariffs on $300 billion in Chinese imports not previously dutied will span seven full days through June 25 and include roughly 320 witnesses, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said in a June 14 notice. Based on USTR’s May 17 notice announcing the List 4 tariffs, post-hearing rebuttal comments would be due July 2, seven days after the hearings end, marking the last deadline in the List 4 proceeding before President Donald Trump decides whether to put the duties into effect. June 17 is also the deadline for written comments in the List 4 proceeding.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will hold a public hearing July 2 at 1:30 p.m. on product addition and removal petitions and competitive need limitation (CNL) waiver petitions submitted as part of the 2019 Generalized System of Preferences review, it said in a notice. The hearing will fall the same day as an International Trade Commission hearing on the economic effects of the potential GSP changes, which include the removal of two country-product pairs from the program, waivers of CNLs for two country-product pairs and the re-addition of four country-product pairs to the program (see 1906090007). Pre-hearing comments and briefs for USTR are due June 26, and the deadline for post-hearing comments for USTR is Aug. 15, USTR said. The effective date for any modifications resulting from the 2019 GSP review will be Nov. 1, 2019, the agency said.
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will not attend the G-20 meeting in Japan, where he would have the opportunity for brief bilateral meetings with Chinese, Japanese, Mexican and European counterparts. Deputy USTR Dennis Shea will lead the U.S. delegation June 8 and 9.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative posted a notice on its website that extends the June 1 deadline to June 15 for goods in transit that will be subject to a Section 301 tariff increase (see 1905310070). Chinese imports subject to the third tranche of Section 301 tariffs that were on the water as of May 10 will stay at the 10 percent tariff rate through June 15. The previously announced HTS subheading, 9903.88.09, will continue to apply to those goods, USTR said.
Discussions on how to address non-market-oriented policies such as forced technology transfers, industrial subsidies and state-owned enterprises advanced among Europe, Japan and the U.S., according to a joint statement from Paris on May 23 from the European commissioner for trade, Japan's economy minister and the U.S. trade representative. The also talked about digital trade and e-commerce -- something many countries, including China, are discussing at the World Trade Organization -- and WTO reform.