In the Feb. 19 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 59, No. 8), CBP published proposals to modify and/or revoke ruling letters concerning the tariff classification of aluminum locking brackets and frozen baked goods.
A dairy exporters trade group and a former USMCA negotiator say the state-to-state dispute panels under the NAFTA replacement are only a partial success.
President Donald Trump's directive in his proclamation expanding Section 232 steel tariffs to assess penalties for the misclassification of entries resulting in non-payment of the duties without regard for "evidence of mitigating factors" may run afoul of existing customs laws, trade lawyers said. Even if the directive stays within the bounds of the current statutory scheme, expect more prior disclosures and proactive steps to ensure the proper customs treatment of steel entries, the lawyers added.
The U.S. will consider a revival of Section 301 investigations on digital services taxes in several countries, as well as potential tariffs to counter “trade and regulatory practices” in those and other countries that “discriminate against” or “disproportionally affect” U.S. companies, under a memo signed by President Donald Trump Feb. 21.
President Donald Trump, in a meandering speech at an investors conference in Miami Feb. 19, said he'd be announcing "tariffs on cars and semiconductors and chips and pharmaceuticals, drugs, and pharmaceuticals, and lumber, probably, and some other things, over the next month, or sooner -- and it'll have a big impact in America."
Improving trade for U.S. cars in Europe is "clearly the priority" for American trade negotiators, according to European Union Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, who had a four-hour meeting Feb. 19 with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, U.S. trade representative nominee Jamieson Greer and Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council.
Howard Lutnick is now the commerce secretary, after the Senate voted 51-45 to confirm him the evening of Feb. 18. All the Republicans present at the time of the vote endorsed Lutnick.
Democrats from the Pacific Northwest, California, Illinois, New York and Colorado say wineries are already being harmed as province-run liquor stores in Canada ban American wines from their shelves due to the 25% tariff threat over migration, now in abeyance.
President Donald Trump said that he will "probably" say more about the scope of tariffs on cars "on April 2, but it'll be in the neighborhood of 25%," in response to a question at a press conference Feb. 18.
The Committee to Support U.S. Trade Laws asked leaders at DHS, the Commerce Department, the International Trade Commission and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to protect recent hires who have been targeted for dismissal by the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.