A countervailing duty cash deposit requirement will take effect June 10 for imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic products from China (C-570-011), as the Commerce Department found illegal subsidization of Chinese producers in its preliminary determination. The duties solar cells that have partially been produced in third countries, but assembled into solar panels and other solar products in China. Commerce said it is still considering comments on the controversial scope (see 14060326).
Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Wendy Cutler will meet with senior Japanese negotiator Takeo Mori from June 9-10 to discuss automobile trade barriers in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Office of the USTR said in its weekly schedule. Cutler on June 10 will then deliver a keynote speech to a conference jointly hosted by Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Japan External Trade Organization. The speech will focus on economic integration in the Asia-Pacific region, said USTR in the release.
The Commerce Department issued the preliminary results of its countervailing duty administrative review on magnesia carbon bricks from China (C-570-955). The agency preliminarily assigned a penalty rate to Fengchi for the company's alleged lack of cooperation. It also preliminarily assigned a new CV rate to nearly 130 companies that are under review but not being individual examined.
The Commerce Department issued the preliminary results of its antidumping duty administrative review on narrow woven ribbon with woven selvedge from China (A-570-952). The agency preliminarily assigned the only company under review, Yangzhou Bestpak, the high China-wide rate. Commerce said Bestpak didn't respond to Commerce's questionnaires, and thus didn't demonstrate independence from Chinese government control.
Mexico's Diario Oficial of June 5 lists notices from the Secretary of Foreign Affairs and the Secretary of Economy as follows:
The International Trade Commission published notices in the June 4 Federal Register on the following AD/CV injury, Section 337 patent, and other trade proceedings (any notices that warrant a more detailed summary will be in another ITT article):
The Commerce Department will require cash deposits of estimated countervailing duties on imports of crystalline silicon photovoltaic products from China, it said June 3 in a fact sheet announcing its preliminary determination. The agency set CV duty cash deposit rates at 18.56%-35.21% for Chinese exporters. Domestic solar companies requested the duties to close a "loophole" in the 2012 AD/CVD orders on solar cells that’s allegedly letting in an increasing amount of Chinese solar modules made from Taiwanese solar cells (see 14010301).
A proposal by the Consumer Product Safety Commission to set new requirements for voluntary recalls could undermine a program that quickly gets defective product off the market, said former CPSC Chairwoman Ann Brown in a letter to CPSC and several Congressmen dated May 30. By prohibiting disclaimers from companies initiating recalls and making voluntary corrective action plans legally binding, the November 2013 proposed rule (see 13112028) may make CPSC’s “fast track” program impossible, said Brown in the letter, which was posted by the blog Consumer Product Matters.
Revelations about the NSA’s facial recognition database forced back open the debate of the scope of the NTIA-backed facial recognition code of conduct during a Tuesday meeting. Months ago, NTIA had essentially decided, over some dissent, that the code of conduct would cover only commercial use of facial recognition technology because of the Commerce Department’s jurisdiction. Tuesday, the group discussed ways the code could tangentially control government use of the tech -- such as when the government is the customer of a private company, or when it’s requesting facial recognition information from a privacy company.
Revelations about the NSA’s facial recognition database forced back open the debate of the scope of the NTIA-backed facial recognition code of conduct during a Tuesday meeting. Months ago, NTIA had essentially decided, over some dissent, that the code of conduct would cover only commercial use of facial recognition technology because of the Commerce Department’s jurisdiction (WID Feb 26 p1; Feb 7 p1). Tuesday, the group discussed ways the code could tangentially control government use of the tech -- such as when the government is the customer of a private company, or when it’s requesting facial recognition information from a privacy company.