Five Republican House members told Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross in an Oct. 23 letter that the importation of electrical transformers and transformer cores is not a national security issue, and that the increase in imports of the goods from Canada and Mexico is a logical consequence of putting 25% tariffs on the steel used to make these goods. The letter, led by Rep. Denver Riggleman, R-Va., said that adding Section 232 tariffs could put 15,000 transformer industry jobs at risk. Riggleman was defeated in his primary. Reps. Benjamin Cline and Morgan Griffith, both of Virginia; Dan Bishop of North Carolina; and Bruce Westerman of Arkansas also signed.

The conclusion of whether imported blueberries are damaging domestic producers won't come until February, and it's not clear whether a Biden administration would impose tariff rate quotas or tariffs on blueberries from Mexico or Canada if the International Trade Commission recommends that an intervention is warranted.

The U.S.-Japan mini-deal is not consistent with World Trade Organization rules, a former White House trade negotiator said, so the two sides mentioned a future phase two deal to cover substantially all trade to convince Japan's parliament to pass the accord. Because of the way the deal was structured, with small tariff reductions for Japanese exporters, it did not require a vote in Congress, Clete Willems, speaking recently on a webinar for University of Nebraska students, said. In calling the mini-deal phase one, “I think both sides were playing it cute, to be honest,” Willems, now at Akin Gump, said. He said Japan was not interested in a comprehensive bilateral trade deal, because it still wants the U.S. to rejoin the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

The U.S.-Japan mini-deal is not consistent with World Trade Organization rules, a former White House trade negotiator said, so the two sides mentioned a future phase two deal to cover substantially all trade to convince Japan's parliament to pass the accord. Because of the way the deal was structured, with small tariff reductions for Japanese exporters, it did not require a vote in Congress, Clete Willems, speaking recently on a webinar for University of Nebraska students, said. In calling the mini-deal phase one, “I think both sides were playing it cute, to be honest,” Willems, now at Akin Gump, said. He said Japan was not interested in a comprehensive bilateral trade deal, because it still wants the U.S. to rejoin the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Aug. 31 - Sept. 6:

The International Trade Commission will begin an investigation on whether imports of blueberries from Mexico, Chile, Peru, Chile, Canada and Argentina are damaging domestic growers. The ITC will have until Dec. 30 to determine whether there is serious injury, and increased imports are at least as important as any other cause. According to the ITC, the injury requirement is considered to be more difficult than the one in antidumping and countervailing duty laws. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative requested the investigation -- only the second time USTR has initiated a safeguard investigation in 25 years -- and is also laying the groundwork for potential investigations into strawberries and bell peppers.

There are no plans to automatically extend Section 301 tariff exclusions, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in answers to written questions from senators on the Finance Committee and members of the House Ways and Means Committee. When he was asked repeatedly by members of Congress if the exclusions would be extended automatically to help small businesses struggling due to the COVID-19 recession, he said no and that “USTR has not decided whether to possibly extend again the exclusions extended until the end of 2020.” Lighthizer testified at the hearings in June (see 2006180029 and 2006170008).

As the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative weighs whether to remove any items from the Airbus retaliatory tariff list and replace them with other goods, or to hike tariffs on any goods now being taxed at an additional 25%, most trade groups are asking him to limit tariffs to aerospace, and spare what they import. The decision is due by Aug. 12.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will publish on July 21 the tariff rate quota allocations for raw cane sugar for fiscal year 2021.

Jesus Seade, who led the USMCA negotiations on behalf of the president-elect in Mexico in 2018, said that while the World Trade Organization is a member-driven organization, the director-general should be more than just a facilitator, especially since the body is in crisis.