Lori Wallach, a long-time free-trade skeptic, urged listeners to her Rethink Trade podcast to call their members of Congress and say: "I am scared silly about the abuse of this outrageous de minimis loophole. What is the congressman going to do to close this loophole?"
Human Rights Watch says that "some car manufacturers in China have succumbed to government pressure to apply weaker human rights and responsible sourcing standards at their Chinese joint ventures than in their global operations," and argues that car companies should disengage from all suppliers that source aluminum from Xinjiang, and should map aluminum supply chains back to the bauxite mines, whether for aluminum ingots or semi-fabricated aluminum.
McDonald's, Illy, Nestle and other companies responded to allegations from civil society groups that their supply chains in Brazil have ties to forced labor.
DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas directed CBP and Homeland Security Investigations to "provide him with a comprehensive enforcement action plan in 30 days" to protect domestic textile interests. The announcement, after a meeting with domestic textile mill owners who asked the government to step up free trade agreement enforcement and Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act apparel enforcement and to end de minimis sales, also says that report should include "a determination whether current trade law provides adequate authorities to solve the core issues."
As Josh Kagan leaves as assistant U.S. trade representative for labor, USTR Katherine Tai announced that Katy Mastman will replace him in an acting capacity. Tai said, "Josh’s leadership has been instrumental in our successful use of the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism and work to eradicate forced labor in supply chains."
Customs lawyer Ted Murphy, remarking on the nine-page letter from the House Select Committee on China regarding Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and other customs issues (see 2401220005), said firms should be aware that enforcement of laws that affect trade with China is a top priority.
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Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., and two dozen other Democrats, told Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo that it's clear that Vietnam doesn't meet the criteria in law to qualify as a market economy -- and that if the agency were to classify it that way, the way that status that would affect 25 antidumping and countervailing duty orders would threaten American workers.
Eight senators, led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., told Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo that "there is abundant evidence" to suggest that Vietnam has not met legal conditions for market economy status.
The Southern Shrimp Alliance formally petitioned for the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force to add eight Chinese processing companies to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act's Entity List.