Brazil is establishing tariff rate quotas on a range of imports and reducing import tariffs “to correct a lack of supply in the Brazilian market,” according to a July 19 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Certain products -- including insecticides, “monochloroacetic acid,” polyester yarn, acrylic filament tow and certain vaccines -- will have their tariff rates reduced to 2 percent for one year, the report said. The reduced rates for each item will take effect at different times, ranging from July to December.
The head of the agriculture committee for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement between Canada and the European Union initiated a review earlier this year of how Canada is running its tariff rate quota system for imported cheeses, according to a report in the National Post in Canada.
India announced several changes in duty rates as part of its 2019 budget, including tariff cuts to certain electrical-related imports and tariff increases on certain auto parts and metals, according to a July 22 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. India announced exemptions on import tariffs for certain electrical “components,” including “e-drive assemblies, on-board chargers, e-compressors and charging guns,” the report said. The items will not be subject to the 10 percent customs duty in an effort to spur electric vehicle production in India, the report said. The country also increases tariff rates on certain auto-related goods, including rear-view mirrors, car locks, oil filters and air conditioner units, the report said. Those changes were made to “curtail the level of non-essential imports and boost domestic production” in India, the report said. The changes took effect July 6.
Xinhua, China's official state-run news agency, reported July 21 that some Chinese firms have requested that retaliatory tariffs on U.S. agricultural goods be lifted, and have made inquiries with U.S. producers about purchasing those goods. The report did not say which commodities are being considered, or in what quantities. However, it noted that the U.S. recently "expressed willingness to encourage U.S. businesses to continue providing supplies for Chinese enterprises," a potential reference to Huawei, and that the government exempted 110 industrial products from Section 301 tariffs. President Donald Trump tweeted July 11 that "China is letting us down in that they have not been buying the agricultural products from our great Farmers that they said they would. Hopefully they will start soon!"
The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of July 19 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):
Australia recently updated excise duty rates on beer that may provide benefits for small beer manufacturers, according to a July 19 report from KPMG. Beer packaged in kegs that hold between 8 and 48 liters will now be subject to the same duty rate as beer packaged in “the standard keg size” of 48 liters, the report said. Previously, kegs that held more than 48 liters of beer were subject to lower tariff rates than smaller kegs. Australia hopes the change will “provide small and microbrewers of beer a greater chance of remaining competitive against their global and sector-dominating counterparts, due to the fact that craft and microbrewers generally use smaller kegs in their production,” KPMG said. The change also makes certain alcohol manufacturers eligible to claim a refund of “60 percent of excise duty paid within a twelve month period to a maximum of $100,000,” the report said. KPMG said the previous cap was $30,000. The changes took effect July 1.
Singapore Customs said a man was sentenced to 42 months in prison and penalized with a more than $10 million fine for “dealing with duty-unpaid cigarettes,” in a July 17 press release. Because the man did not pay the fine, Singapore said an extra 28 months was added to his sentence. Singapore Customs said the man and five others were arrested for evading about $350,000 in duties on cigarettes in 2017. The man coordinated the delivery of the cigarettes, which were loaded onto two Malaysian-registered cars “for distribution to various locations in Singapore,” according to the notice. The man is a repeat offender, previously convicted of similar offenses in 2006, and also in 2014, for being caught in 2012 and 2013 importing or delivering duty-unpaid cigarettes.
American farmers are losing market share in Japan as Canada and Australia get the benefit of lower tariffs through the Trans-Pacific Partnership and European producers also get benefits through their region's free trade agreement with Japan.
China believes that trade “frictions” with the U.S. “should be resolved through dialogue and consultation,” a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson said on July 17. He was asked about President Donald Trump’s July 16 Cabinet meeting remarks that the U.S. has a “long way to go” before reaching a trade deal with China and can still impose the threatened List 4 Section 301 tariffs on $325 billion worth of Chinese goods “if we want.” If the U.S. “thinks there is still a long way to go before a deal is concluded, well, as the Chinese saying goes, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,” the spokesperson said. “No matter how long the way is, as long as you step forward, you will eventually reach the destination.” In the face of the U.S. threat to impose the List 4 duties, “China will firmly defend its own interests,” the spokesperson said. “If the U.S. does impose new tariffs, that will indeed set new obstacles for the trade talks. There will be an even longer way to go before reaching a deal.”
The delay in passing the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement is closing other foreign markets for U.S. exporters as trading partners grow more uncertain about the U.S.’s trade negotiations, representatives from U.S. livestock industries said July 16.