A change in administrations could boost the National Association for Foreign-Trade Zones' rear guard action against a proposal for the USMCA technical fixes bill, lobbyist Brian Hannigan told listeners at the NAFTZ virtual conference Oct. 29.
Section 301 (too broad)
China doesn’t comment on U.S. internal affairs such as its presidential election, a Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson said Oct. 30 when asked about comments by a Joe Biden aide that the Democratic Party nominee would consult with allies on what to do about the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports if he's elected president. “China's policy on the United States remains highly stable and consistent,” the spokesperson said, according to a transcript of a news conference. “We are committed to developing a China-U.S. relationship featuring non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation.” Biden would seek “collective leverage” against China by bonding with allies to curb Beijing's allegedly unfair trade practices, foreign policy adviser Jeffrey Prescott told Reuters Oct. 28. “The failure of the Trump administration has been to go it alone.” Biden won’t “lock into any premature position before we see exactly what we’re inheriting,” Prescott said when asked if Biden would lift the tariffs unilaterally if elected. “Consulting with allies is going to be a central part of that.”
The World Trade Organization told member countries this week that the U.S. has filed an appeal on a panel report on the legality of its Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports. Because there is no appellate body, there is no way to appeal a case, but China cannot take action under WTO rules while the appeal is pending. In practical terms, however, China already retaliated years ago for the Section 301 tariffs.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Oct. 19-23 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Oct. 19-25:
An advance notice of proposed rulemaking on customs broker continuing education requirements (see 2009140033) is scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on Oct. 28, said John Leonard, CBP executive director-trade policy and programs, during the virtual Western Cargo Conference on Oct. 23. The advance notice will be available for preview on the public inspection site on Oct. 27, he said. “It's a great ANPRM, if I do say so myself.”
Law firm Husch Blackwell has no objection to a Department of Justice proposal to designate the first-filed HMTX Industries-Jasco Products complaint as a test case in the massive Section 301 litigation, but “there is no reason that it should be chosen as the only test case without further analysis,” it said Oct. 22 in a partial opposition to the government’s Oct. 19 motion for case management procedures (see 2010200022). It told the Court of International Trade that it represents 75 “individually named plaintiffs” of the “approximately 6000 plus” importers seeking to vacate the lists 3 and 4A tariff rulemakings and get the duties refunded.
FBB Federal Relations partner Ray Bucheger told members of the Pacific Coast Council of Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Associations that while the message on the Hill is discouraging on extending current Section 301 exclusions, his firm is working on legislation for the companies that received exclusions too late to get refunds for the tariffs paid.
HMTX Industries and Jasco Products, the initial filers of the Section 301 litigation seeking to vacate the lists 3 and 4A tariff rulemakings and get the duties refunded, strongly oppose the Department of Justice’s prolonged briefing format and schedule proposed Oct. 19 in a motion for case management procedures (see 2010200022), Akin Gump said in a response Oct. 22 at the Court of International Trade. Under the government’s proposal, the parties would not begin to argue the “merits of this dispute” before 2022 or beyond, it said. “Given the ongoing harms to thousands of plaintiffs, among others, that protracted schedule is unacceptable.”
IRobot anticipates “going back to a world” of 25% Section 301 tariffs on Chinese-sourced goods once its List 3 tariff exclusion expires Dec. 31, CEO Colin Angle said on a Q3 call Oct. 21. The pandemic delayed iRobot’s “original plans” to shift most U.S.-bound production to Malaysia by the end of 2020 to reduce or eliminate its Chinese tariff exposure (see 2002070006), instead pushing the Malaysia transition “well into 2021,” he said.