A domestic steel manufacturer filed petitions on Feb. 20 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission requesting new antidumping duty investigations on carbon and alloy steel wire rod from China, India, Taiwan and Thailand, and new countervailing duties on the same product from China and India. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD/CVD investigations on carbon and alloy steel threaded rod that could eventually result in the assessment of AD/CV duties. The petition was filed by Vulcan Steel Products.
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.
CBP is seeking comments by April 22 on an existing information collection for yachts imported for sale, it said in a notice. CBP proposes to extend the expiration date of this information collection with no change to the information collected or to the estimated burden hours associated with the collection.
It bears watching how U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer interprets his “instruction” to initiate an exclusion process as required under the Feb. 15 spending bill (see 1902150047), customs lawyer Ted Murphy of Baker McKenzie blogged. That includes whether Lighthizer will apply it retroactively to Sept. 24. Though “the expectation that USTR will create an exclusion process within 30 days is clear,” less so is “exactly what it will cover and how it will be implemented,” he said.
CBP published the quarterly Internal Revenue Service interest rates used to calculate interest on overdue accounts (underpayments) and refunds (overpayments) of customs duties. For the quarter that began Jan. 1 and ends March 31, the interest rates for overpayments increase to 5 percent for corporations and 6 percent for non-corporations, and the interest rate for underpayments will be 6 percent for both corporations and non-corporations. These interest rates are subject to change for the calendar quarter beginning April 1, and ending June 30, CBP said.
A coalition of domestic manufacturers filed petitions Nov. 18 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission, asking for new antidumping duties on acetone from Belgium, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa and Spain. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD duty investigations on acetone from these six countries. The subject merchandise is used as a solvent in the manufacture of coatings, plastics, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics (including nail polish removers), as well as the production of other solvents and intermediates.
The American Association of Exporters and Importers is working on proposed legislation that is meant to improve and allow for a more modern customs process, the group said in comments on CBP's request for input on creating a new customs framework (see 1812200003). The proposal, which the AAEI refers to as "Mod Act 2," has been under development for more than a year. The legislation "seeks to take the process of accounting for imported goods and the collection of Customs duties thereon in a new and more modern direction," the trade group said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Feb. 4-8 in case they were missed.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet Feb. 27 in Washington, D.C., CBP said in a notice.
CBP is extending the comment period to March 8 on an existing information collection about applications for extension of bonds for temporary importations, it said in a notice. CBP proposes to extend the expiration date of this information collection with no change to the information collected or to the estimated burden hours associated with the collection.
While the U.S. trade representative acknowledged some improvements in stopping counterfeit goods at the port before they leave, the overall conclusion of his 193-page report to Congress is that China's compliance with its World Trade Organization commitments is still poor 17 years after accession. China still embraces "a state-led, mercantilist approach to the economy and trade, despite WTO members’ expectations -- and China’s own representations -- that China would transform its economy and pursue the open, market-oriented policies endorsed by the WTO," the report said. Moreover, China is moving away from market-oriented policies in recent years, USTR said.