The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has asked Mexico whether RV Fresh Foods in Uruapan is denying its workers the right to collective bargain. The firm, which makes guacamole, is the first food manufacturer targeted through the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism. COCENA, a Mexican union confederation, alleges that the company restricted the union's access to the facility and intervened in union delegate elections.

The U.S. will tell CBP to resume liquidation of aluminum parts coming from Asiaway Automotive Components Mexico, a Chinese-headquartered firm that does die casting and machining of aluminum parts in San Luis Potosí. According to Asiaway's website, the factory just opened in June 2023.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said it's extending the deadline for an international corporate income tax deal, and is extending its pause on retaliatory tariffs on countries that have passed or were considering passing digital services taxes against American firms.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative seeks a second round of comments in connection with its biennial review of the operation of the USMCA "with respect to trade in automotive goods" (see 2311210026), following a hearing the agency held on Feb. 7 (see 2402050066), it said in a notice. Post-hearing comments are due by Feb. 28. In the review, USTR and the Interagency Committee on Trade in Automotive Goods are considering how USMCA rules affect the competitiveness, employment and investment in North America's automotive sector. USTR is required to publish a report on the subject every two years.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, speaking at the University of Chicago, sidestepped a question about whether the administration would change the Section 301 tariffs, saying that although "there's a lot of drama and emotion around tariffs," the China tariffs are "the least interesting aspect of the management of our trade and economic relationship."

The latest annual Notorious Markets List, which isn't exhaustive, didn't highlight any American-owned platforms, though the Jan. 30 report from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said intellectual property rights holders are concerned "about the proliferation of counterfeit sales facilitated by the confluence of e-commerce platforms and social media."

The Biden administration recommends that metal importers avoid sourcing from or brokering through Myanmar-military owned or affiliated companies, "even if their supply chains appear to be completely outside" the country, so that their sourcing doesn't violate sanctions.

U.S. negotiators will travel to Kenya to have talks under the Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership at the end of the month. "The negotiators last met in person under the STIP in October 2023 in Washington, DC, and have continued to make progress in deepening mutual understanding and resolving differences," the Office of U.S. Trade Representative said. The discussions will cover agriculture, good regulatory practices and workers' rights, it said.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative notified CBP that liquidation can resume for goods imported from the Autoliv Steering Wheels facility in El Marques, Mexico.

For the second time, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative asked the Mexican government to investigate whether service center workers were being denied their right to form a union, under the rapid response labor mechanism in the USMCA.