According to State Department sources, the State Department has implemented a change in policy with respect to the importation of shrimp and shrimp products (shrimp) into the U.S. from countries that have not been certified as meeting the requirements of Section 609 of P.L. 101-162, as follows:
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
On December 10, 2004, President Bush issued Presidential Proclamation 7853 in order to designate Burkina Faso as an African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) beneficiary country.
(a) ZG continues to have a de minimis AD margin, which is 0.07% in the final determination; liquidation continues to not be suspended; AD cash deposits or the posting of a bond will continue to not be required for ZG as exporter and producer.
According to U.S. government sources, the 2005 printed, paper edition of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S. (HTS) is expected to be printed later than usual this year.
On November 19, 2004, the Senate passed the conference version of H.R. 1047, the Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2004. The House passed the conference version of H.R. 1047 on October 8, 2004. The conference version of H.R. 1047 has now been cleared for the White House.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site a notice announcing that the first specialty sugar tariff-rate quota (TRQ) (i.e., tranche) provided for in HTS Chapter 17, Additional U.S. Note (AUSN) 5, which opened on October 26, 2004, oversubscribed at opening moment. According to CBP, the pro rata percentage is .13845 (13.845%). (See notice for reporting instructions.) (See ITT's Online Archives or 10/22/04 news, 04102220, for BP summary of CBP's notice announcing instructions for the 2004/2005 global TRQs for specialty sugar.)(QBT-04-553, dated 10/29/04, available at http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/import/textiles_and_quotas/qbts/QBT2004/2004_553.ctt/04_553.doc)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued two ABI administrative messages announcing that its most recent Harmonized System (HS) updates contain:
The International Trade Administration (ITA) has made a preliminary affirmative antidumping (AD) duty determination that live swine from Canada is being, or is likely to be, sold in the U.S. at less than fair value.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently issued a set of amendments (dated September 16, 2004)1 to the January 30, 2004 version of its instructions on the filing and substantiation of claims for preferential tariff treatment under the U.S.-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SFTA, or SGFTA).
American Shipper reports that the Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has decided to hold a public meeting on October 27, 2004 to discuss the various petitions and comments made by non-vessel-operating common carriers (NVOCCs) requesting tariff exemptions to allow them to have confidential service contracts with shippers. (ShippersNewsWire@americanshipper.com , dated 10/13/04)