CBP New York postponed a seminar on Harmonized Tariff Schedule Headings 9503 (Toys) and 9505 (Festive Articles) that was scheduled for Oct. 24 (see 13092430), said an informational pipeline. The rescheduled date will be sent in a future notice, it said.
Harmonized Tariff Schedule
The Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) is a reference manual that provides duty rates for almost every item that exists. It is a system of classifying and taxing all goods imported into the United States. The HTS is based on the international Harmonized System, which is a global standard for naming and describing trade products, and consists of a hierarchical structure that assigns a specific code and rate to each type of merchandise for duty, quota, and statistical purposes. The HTS was made effective on January 1, 1989, replacing the former Tariff Schedules of the United States. It is maintained by the U.S. International Trade Commission, but the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland Security is responsible for interpreting and enforcing the HTS.
Domestic producer AK Steel filed requests on Sept. 30 for new antidumping duties on non-oriented electrical steel (NOES) from China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Sweden, and Taiwan, and new countervailing duties on NOES from China, South Korea, and Taiwan. According to AK Steel, underselling by exporters in those six countries are causing U.S. companies a loss of domestic market share and falling sales and revenue. NOES is a steel product used in the production of large and small motors, generators, lighting ballasts, and ignition coils, the petition said.
Most federal employees furloughed by the shutdown returned to work Oct. 17, after President Barack Obama signed a bill in the early morning hours to fund the federal government. The Office of Personnel Management said employees are expected to return to work, although it also told agencies to be flexible. Agency websites and databases were restored throughout the morning of Oct. 17. Some websites were slow to come back up on the morning after work resumed -- the Foreign-Trade Zones Board website still redirects to a message about the shutdown as of press time, for example. But most websites, including the International Trade Commission’s online Harmonized Tariff Schedule, are back online. Many agencies anticipate delays as they work through backlogs that accumulated during the shutdown.
Importers and exporters are beginning to encounter problems related to the shutdown from government agencies that regulate their products, said Marianne Rowden, president-American Association of Exporters and Importers. Import and export shipments haven’t faced many delays because of shortfalls at Department of Homeland Security agencies like CBP and the Transportation Security Administration, she said. But shipments that require other government agency (OGA) release, or certificates and permits related to release and shipment, are already encountering problems, said Rowden in an interview Oct. 2.
The trade industry was still assessing the short- and long-term effects of the government shutdown Oct. 1. CBP had already said its core functions would not be immediately affected (see 13093028). And the U.S. National Airspace System was operating normally Oct. 1, with no reports of any impact to operations due to the government shutdown, said The International Air Cargo Association.
The Commerce Department issued Federal Register notices on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on steel concrete reinforcing bar from Mexico and Turkey (A-201-844, A-489-818)), and its countervailing duty investigation on steel concrete reinforcing bar from Turkey (C-489-819). The agency will determine whether imports of the subject merchandise from Mexico and Turkey are being sold in the U.S. at less than fair value, and whether imports from Turkey are being illegally subsidized.
The Commerce Department issued Federal Register notices on its recently initiated antidumping investigation on chlorinated isocyanurates from Japan (A-588-870), and its countervailing duty investigation on chlorinated isocyanurates from China (C-570-991). The agency will determine whether imports of the subject merchandise from Japan are being sold in the U.S. at less than fair value, and whether imports from China are being illegally subsidized.
CBP New York scheduled a seminar on Harmonized Tariff Schedule Headings 9503 (Toys) and 9505 (Festive Articles) at JFK Airport, Jamaica, N.Y. from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m on Oct. 24, it said in an informational pipeline. The seminar will include a presentation by CBP's National Commodity Specialist Division, it said.
The Court of International Trade vacated the remainder of its decision in La Crosse Technology vs. the U.S. and said La Crosse model nos. WS-9013 and -9210 are classifiable under subheading 9025.80.10, Harmonized Tariff Schedule for 2005 or 2006. It also said La Crosse model nos. WS-1610, -2308, -2310, -2315, -2317, -3510, -3512, -3610, -7014, -7042, -7049, -7159, -7211, -7394, -7395, -8025, -8035, -8157, -8610, -9020, -9025, -9031, -9033, -9035, -9043, -9055, -9075, -9096, -9115, -9118, -9119, -9151, -9520, -9600 and -9611, and WT-5130, -5432, and -5442, are classifiable under subheading 9015.80.80, Harmonized Tariff Schedule for 2005 or 2006, and that La Crosse model nos. WS-8117, -8236, and WT-5120 are classifiable under subheading 9105.91.40, Harmonized Tariff Schedule for 2005 or 2006.
Two domestic steel companies and a labor union filed requests on Sept. 18 for new antidumping duties on grain oriented electrical steel (GOES) from China, the Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Poland, and Russia. AK Steel Corporation, Allegheny Ludlum, and the United Steelworkers also requested the Commerce Department and International Trade Commission impose countervailing duties on GOES from China. According to the petitioners, underselling by exporters in the seven countries are causing U.S. companies a loss of domestic market share and falling sales and profits.