U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have issued the following releases on commercial trade and related issues:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the regular ACE Maintenance Window (Saturday 2300 EDT - Sunday 0500 EDT) was to be extended on Sunday, April 1, 2012. The extended window was scheduled from 0500 EDT - 0930 EDT. CBP also said the March 31, 2012 maintenance window scheduled for 23:00 EDT (11pm) began earlier at 22:15 EDT (10:15pm).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection posted an updated Appendix B, Daily Statement and Cargo/Manifest Status Query for the Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection released details on the Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS) Pilot Strategic Plan. The document describes the multi-phased approach for implementation that is expected to take about 28 months. The six phases are:
The Port Commission of Corpus Christi approved a letter of intent (LOI) with Oxy Ingleside Property Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of Occidental Petroleum Corporation , to buy a major portion of former U.S. Naval Station Ingleside (NSI) at a special Commission meeting March 27. Wholly-owned Occidental Chemical Corp. has operated a chemical plant in Ingleside since 1987. This new investment in Ingleside would be an expansion of Oxy’s current operations in the area. The agreement covers about 816 acres at NSI and the 435 acres adjacent. Completion of the transaction is subject to further approval by both the Port Commission and Occidental Petroleum’s board. Closing would take place within 60 days after the "due diligence" period.
The International Longshoremen's Association, AFL-CIO, and the U.S. Maritime Alliance ended two days of negotiations on a new contract March 30 with both sides expressing confidence they’ll reach an agreement before the current pact expires on September 30, the union said. ILA President Harold Daggett and Alliance Chairman James Capo issued a joint statement saying they “had a productive exchange of ideas that will give us a good start toward negotiating a contract sooner, rather than later, in 2012, Both sides … remain committed to reaching an agreement without any disruption to port operations."
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the International Trade Administration posted to U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Web site as of March 30, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching on the listed CBP message number at http://addcvd.cbp.gov.
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the International Trade Administration posted to U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Web site as of March 29, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching on the listed CBP message number at http://addcvd.cbp.gov.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection said the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) will be observing the Cesar Chavez holiday and all berths at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will be closed on April 2, 2012. CBP offices will be open. CBP later clarified that there will be terminals open in the Los Angeles/Long Beach port complex on April 2. Interested parties should contact the individual terminal to determine if cargo operations will take place at that terminal on April 2.
Port Logistics Group and Coastal Logistics Group announced a partnership that they said would extend their geographic reach and service offerings. The partnership will allow the two companies to offer complete logistics solutions at all major U.S. import and export gateways, they said. Port Logistics and its partners operate more than four million square feet of warehouse space in and around the ports of New York/New Jersey, Los Angeles/Long Beach, and Seattle. Coastal Logistics operates in the Southeast gateway through locations in Savannah, Ga., Norfolk, Va., and Memphis, Tenn.