A recent strategic plan on intellectual property enforcement strategy and policy efforts mandated by statute calls for more executive action to strengthen CBP's hand, statutory changes to allow injunctions against online marketplaces that list counterfeit goods, and possible changes to who can ship de minimis packages. The plan is required under the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property Act of 2008, known as PRO-IP.
Customs Duty
A Customs Duty is a tariff or tax which a country imposes on goods when they are transported across international borders. Customs Duties are used to protect countries' economies, residents, jobs, and environments, by limiting the flow of imported merchandise, especially restricted and prohibited goods, into the country. The Customs Duty Rate is a percentage determined by the value of the article purchased in the foreign country and not based on quality, size, or weight.
The Commerce Department issued Federal Register notices on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on utility scale wind towers from India, Malaysia and Spain (A-533-897, A-557-821, A-469-823), and countervailing duty investigation on wind towers from India and Malaysia (C-533-898, C-557-822).
CBP has identified three primary goals for the 21st Century Customs Framework, which has the potential to upend the approach to customs processing, said Maranda Kan, acting director of trade modernization, Office of Trade. Those goals are: “to achieve end-to-end supply chain transparency; to drive data-centric decision-making; and to diversify reasonable care standards,” she told a virtual U.S. Fashion Industry Association event Nov. 10.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Nov. 2-6 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
CBP has some qualms with the operational aspects of ending the de minimis exemption for goods subject to Section 301 tariffs, Executive Assistant Commissioner for International Trade Brenda Smith said while speaking on the virtual Coalition of New England Companies for Trade conference on Nov. 9. There's a CBP proposal for the change that's under Office of Management and Budget review (see 2009040026). “We do have some concerns,” she said.
The Commerce Department Nov. 2 released a notice on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on thermal paper from Germany (A-428-850), Japan (A-588-880), South Korea (A-580-911) and Spain (A-469-824).
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.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Two domestic manufacturers filed a petition Oct. 27 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission requesting new antidumping duties on polyester textured yarn from Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD duty investigations on polyester staple fiber from these four countries. Unifi Manufacturing, Inc. and Nan Ya Plastics Corporation, America requested the inquiry.
The Commerce Department on Oct. 26 published a Federal Register notice on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on aluminum foil from Armenia (A-831-804), Brazil (A-351-856), Oman (A-523-815), Russia (A-821-828) and Turkey (A-489-844), and that same day released a notice on its recently initiated countervailing duty investigations on Oman (C-523-816) and Turkey (C-489-845).