The Trump administration should “lift” the Section 301 tariffs on more than 60 categories of “healthcare-essential” information and communications technology (ICT) products to help the U.S. fight the COVID-19 pandemic, urged the Information Technology Industry Council. “Relief” from the tariffs “would directly contribute to the U.S. economic and public health response to the current crisis,” ITI said. “A range of ICT products and components are at the heart of detecting and treating illnesses, recording and tracking vital signs, and conducting tests,” it said. Processors, controllers and integrated circuits, for example, imported from China under the 8542.31.00 tariff code are “foundational to a variety of medical equipment,” it said. List 2 tariffs on 8542.31.00 goods were imposed in August 2018 and are still in effect at 25%. Lifting the tariffs “will help to alleviate the strain on the healthcare system in the midst of dealing with COVID-19,” ITI said. “Tariffs act as direct impediments to U.S. governments, consumers and businesses, and we would encourage the removal of tariffs by any means to increase confidence in the COVID-19 response and support economic recovery.” While others, including Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce have urged the administration to defer the tariffs for 90 days, ITI is asking for the duties’ outright removal.
As importers wait to hear whether duties can be deferred for 90 days after goods enter the U.S., voices for and against the proposal are speaking out. Reports have said that the deferral would be on most favored nation (MFN), but not sections 301, 232 or 201 actions. President Donald Trump has been coy about whether he will support such a move, or when (see 2004010047).
A domestic producer coalition filed petitions on March 31 with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission requesting new antidumping duty investigations on mattresses from Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Serbia, Thailand, Turkey and Vietnam, and new countervailing duties on mattresses from China. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD/CVD investigations on mattresses from these countries that could eventually result in the assessment of AD/CV duties.
CBP will add on April 2 the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with recently excluded goods in the fourth tranche of Section 301 tariffs, it said in a CSMS message. The fourth tranche product exclusions apply retroactively to Sept. 1, 2019, and will remain in effect until Sept. 1, 2020. (see 2003260030)
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for March 23-27 in case they were missed.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP added on March 31 the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with recently excluded goods in the third tranche of Section 301 tariffs, it said in a CSMS message. The official Office of the U.S. Trade Representative notice for the exclusions was published on March 26 (see 2003230043). The exclusions are in subheading 9903.88.43. The exclusions are available for any product that meets the description in the Annex to USTR’s notice, regardless of whether the importer filed an exclusion request. The product exclusions apply retroactively to Sept. 24, 2018, and will expire after Aug. 7, 2020. The CSMS message also includes a summary of Section 301 duties that shows information on each tranche of tariffs and granted product exclusions.
CBP may still suspend some duty collections (see 2003280001), according to a person knowledgeable about the discussions. The Wall Street Journal said in a March 27 report that duty collections would be deferred for three months, though President Donald Trump called the report “fake news.” The person said that there are multiple options being looked at and the plans are not yet finalized. One such option includes limiting the deferrals to regular duties, taxes and fees, and not trade remedies, such as the Section 301 tariffs and antidumping or countervailing duties, the person said. While the specifics are still being discussed, the action may come in the form of an executive order or Federal Register notice, the person said.
CBP may still suspend some duty collections, according to a person knowledgeable of the discussions. The Wall Street Journal said in a March 27 report that duty collections would be deferred for three months, though President Donald Trump called the report "fake news."
The House of Representatives, on a voice vote March 27, passed a bill that will give businesses access to forgivable loans and grants to keep operations going as the economy grinds to a halt due to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. President Donald Trump signed it later that afternoon. It includes a provision that could help importers that have been unprofitable after the imposition of Section 301 or Section 232 tariffs (see 2003250025). Companies can use the losses they incurred in 2018, 2019 or 2020 to get income tax refunds from the previous five years. They could apply now for those 2018 and 2019 losses. The bill also sets in motion a study of the U.S. medical product supply chain.