Rationales for opposing the President Donald Trump’s plan to increase Section 301 duties on Chinese goods to 30 percent “have only strengthened with the passage of time since the imposition of the original tariffs on Lists 1, 2, and 3,” commented CTA in docket USTR-2019-0015. Since July 2018, “these tariffs have cost the consumer technology industry and its consumers -- not China -- more than $10 billion,” it said. That includes more than $1 billion in tariff payments “on 5G-related products, it said. For Q4, the industry “expects to pay an additional $7 billion to account for tariffs on new products,” said CTA. Tariffs create “a negative chain reaction” for the consumer tech industry, commented the Information Technology Industry Council. The administration claimed it acted “to avoid placing tariffs on consumer products” when it imposed the first three rounds of 25 percent duties, but “there is simply no way to protect consumers from tariffs on $200 billion worth of goods,” said ITI. Hiking the duty rates to 30 percent “would only cause additional harm to U.S. consumers, cost U.S. jobs, and undermine U.S. technology companies in the fight for global leadership,” said ITI. “The proposed increase of tariffs on products from Lists 1-3 specifically affects” a wide variety of consumer products, including smart appliances and virtual-reality headsets, it said. Raising tariffs “will have broad implications, as all telecommunications equipment relies on gateways, modems, optical transceivers and routers,” it said.

Rationales for opposing the President Donald Trump’s plan to increase Section 301 duties on Chinese goods to 30 percent “have only strengthened with the passage of time since the imposition of the original tariffs on Lists 1, 2, and 3,” commented CTA in docket USTR-2019-0015. Since July 2018, “these tariffs have cost the consumer technology industry and its consumers -- not China -- more than $10 billion,” it said. That includes more than $1 billion in tariff payments “on 5G-related products, it said. For Q4, the industry “expects to pay an additional $7 billion to account for tariffs on new products,” said CTA. Tariffs create “a negative chain reaction” for the consumer tech industry, commented the Information Technology Industry Council. The administration claimed it acted “to avoid placing tariffs on consumer products” when it imposed the first three rounds of 25 percent duties, but “there is simply no way to protect consumers from tariffs on $200 billion worth of goods,” said ITI. Hiking the duty rates to 30 percent “would only cause additional harm to U.S. consumers, cost U.S. jobs, and undermine U.S. technology companies in the fight for global leadership,” said ITI. “The proposed increase of tariffs on products from Lists 1-3 specifically affects” a wide variety of consumer products, including smart appliances and virtual-reality headsets, it said. Raising tariffs “will have broad implications, as all telecommunications equipment relies on gateways, modems, optical transceivers and routers,” it said.

That Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods “have been growing in scope and now size” is causing “a scramble among importers to find alternative sources of supply,” commented the National Retail Federation in docket USTR-2019-0015. The Trump administration “might think this is a good way to exert pressure on China, [but] it comes at a very high cost to American manufacturers that use imported inputs for U.S. production, as well as retailers and consumers,” it said. The scramble “is bidding up prices for these goods from all possible alternative manufacturers,” it said. Higher prices are “already on the horizon,” and the problem's “particularly acute for products sold by small retailers across the country that have little control over their supply chains,” it said. NRF urged the administration to “refrain” from hiking the first three rounds of tariffs to 30 percent as planned for Oct. 15 and to “reconsider altogether the tariff approach to incentivizing China to modify its acts." The strategy “has not worked,” and is causing significant “collateral damage to wide swaths of the U.S.” and is “costing American jobs,” it said. “Reevaluate a strategy based solely on tariffs and focus on building an international coalition of our allies who share our concerns.”

CBP will add the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with the seventh group of exclusions from the first tranche of Section 301 tariffs on Sept. 29, it said in a CSMS message. Filers of imported products that were granted an exclusion (see 1909180013) should report the regular Chapter 84, 85, 87, 88 or 90 Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, as well as subheading 9903.88.14, for products subject to Section 301 duties on products from China but that have been granted an exclusion by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. “Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when HTS 9903.88.14 is submitted,” CBP said.

Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., introduced a bill that would distribute tariff revenue from safeguard tariffs on solar panels and washing machines, Section 232 tariffs and Section 301 tariffs to low and moderate-income taxpayers. The entire amount collected would be divided among taxpayers who earn less than $84,200 for individual filers or $168,400 for joint filers, he said Sept. 26. The household's share of the total revenue would come as a check, even if that household's tax liability was less than the amount. People who are claimed as dependents on others' taxes, or who do not have legal immigration status, would not be eligible.

CBP will add the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with the second group of excluded goods from the third tranche of Section 301 tariffs on Sept 29, it said in a CSMS message. Filers of imported products that were granted an exclusion (see 1909180004) should report the regular Chapters 38, 39, 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 54, 55, 59, 73, 76, 83, 84, 85, 87 and 94 Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, as well as subheading 9903.88.18, for products subject to Section 301 duties on products from China but that have been granted an exclusion by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. “Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when HTS 9903.88.18 is submitted,” CBP said.

The trade group representing big-box retailers used President Donald Trump’s own words about tariffs’ possible harm to holiday shopping to urge his administration not to raise the first three rounds of Section 301 duties on Chinese goods to 30 percent as planned for Oct. 15 (see 1909120002). Trump “acknowledged that tariffs hurt consumers” when he deferred putting the List 4B tariffs into effect until Dec. 15, commented the Retail Industry Leaders Association in docket USTR-2019-0015, citing the president’s Aug. 13 remarks (see 1908130028).

Best Buy “has a proven history of commercializing all new technologies” but won’t “size” the five-year financial opportunity from 5G, Chief Operating Officer Mike Mohan told the retailer’s analyst day conference Wednesday. Best Buy’s target is to grow revenue to $50 billion in the fiscal year ending February 2025 from the current FY 2020 guidance of $43.1 billion to $43.6 billion, and to do so with $1 billion of additional cost reductions and efficiencies, said the company. CEO Corie Barry told the conference the goals were “aggressive but attainable.”

Total U.S. shipments of “personal devices,” including desktop PCs, laptops, tablets and mobile phones, will rise at only 0.2 percent compound annual growth rate the next few years, reaching 278.6 million units in 2023, reported the Daniel Research Group Tuesday. “Standard” phones will have the biggest CAGR decline through 2023 at 34.8 percent, while smartphones increase at a 1.8 percent CAGR through the period, it said. Total tablets will have an 8.2 percent CAGR decline, it said. The forecasts assume no U.S. recession and that Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods increase prices by 10 to 25 percent, depending on the product, it said.

Total U.S. shipments of “personal devices,” including desktop PCs, laptops, tablets and mobile phones, will rise at only 0.2 percent compound annual growth rate the next few years, reaching 278.6 million units in 2023, reported the Daniel Research Group Tuesday. “Standard” phones will have the biggest CAGR decline through 2023 at 34.8 percent, while smartphones increase at a 1.8 percent CAGR through the period, it said. Total tablets will have an 8.2 percent CAGR decline, it said. The forecasts assume no U.S. recession and that Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods increase prices by 10 to 25 percent, depending on the product, it said.