Automakers, chipmakers and broad business groups asked the Bureau of Industry and Security to give their industries more time to adjust to new requirements to move supply chains out of China and report on what companies are in their connected vehicle supply chains.
The American Chemistry Council said that 90% of liquid chemicals imported and exported go through ports that are closed by the dockworkers strike. "The chemicals that are shipped to and from these ports are used by every segment of the world's economy, including chemistry needed to support healthcare, advanced energy, agriculture, auto manufacturing, building and construction, household products, aerospace and defense, semiconductor chips and electronics, and more," the trade group said. The imports and exports in 2022 were worth more than $100 billion.
Solar manufacturers asked for retroactive relief on Section 301 tariffs on manufacturing equipment, buyers and producers disagreed on medical product tariffs and many manufacturers supported the equipment listed, and asked for more equipment or parts for equipment that was not identified by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative as it recommended a new round of exclusions limited to manufacturing equipment.
A union request that the government impose a fee on Chinese-made vessels docking at U.S. ports via a Section 301 action confronting subsidization in China's shipbuilding sector (see 2404170029) was mentioned favorably by Democrats and Republicans at a House Select Committee on China hearing that covered Chinese efforts in that sector, semiconductors and drones.
In the first third of its first public hearing on promoting supply chain resilience, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and interagency officials heard from groups disputing the premise of the project -- that liberalizing trade was harmful to U.S. workers and manufacturing -- and from those who say the worker-centered trade approach of the Biden administration is not going far enough to restore American manufacturing.
A career staffer in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative whose portfolio includes the auto industry told an audience of auto industry supply chain professionals that it's likely the U.S. will be talking with Mexico about the increased foreign direct investment from Chinese companies manufacturing auto parts or, potentially, assembling vehicles, in Mexico.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said April 17 she’s concerned that a host of upcoming elections around the world could fuel harmful sentiment against international trade.
The U.S. and the EU held the fifth meeting of the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council in Washington on Jan. 30, where the two sides again committed to increasing trade and cooperating on economic security and emerging technology issues, according to a European Commission readout of the meeting. The commission said the EU and the U.S. agreed to “explore ways to facilitate trade in goods and technologies that are vital for the green transition” and strengthen approaches to investment screening, export controls, outbound investment and “dual-use innovation.”