USTR Modifies EU Products/Countries Subject to 100% Duties Under WTO Beef Hormone Dispute, Etc.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has announced that it is modifying the list of European Union products and countries subject to 100% duties in connection with the World Trade Organization's dispute settlement rulings in the EU beef hormone dispute. It is also raising the duty rate of one product to 300%.
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Changes to List Take Effect March 23, 2009
The USTR's changes are effective with respect to products that are entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after March 23, 2009.
Any merchandise subject to increased duties that is admitted to U.S. foreign trade zones on or after March 23, 2009 must be admitted with "privileged foreign status" as defined in 19 CFR 146.41. Any merchandise that is no longer subject to increased duties as a result of these changes is no longer subject to the requirement that it must be admitted to a U.S. FTZ with "privileged foreign status."
List Reflects Changes to Countries and Products Subject to Increased Duties
The below product list reflects changes to the countries and products subject to the increased duty rates and, in many cases, reflects its application to a wider range of EU countries (some of which were not part of the EU when the increased duties were originally imposed).
Revised List of Products Subject to Increased Duties
Effective with respect to articles entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after March 23, 2009, the HTS is modified by adding in numerical sequence the following 35 new HTS Chapter 99 subheadings (and their text) and superior text. (Products newly subject to the higher duty rate are in bold text.)
Articles the product of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain or Sweden:
| Wool grease (other than crude wool grease) and fatty substances derived from wool grease (including lanolin) (provided for in subheading 1505.00.90) | 100% |
Articles the product of Austria, Cyprus, France or Poland:
| 9903.02.79 | Grape juice (including grape must), not fortified with vitamins or minerals, unfermented and not containing added spirit, whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter (provided for in subheading 2009.61 or 2009.69) | 100% |
|---|---|---|
| 9903.02.80 | Juice of any other single fruit, not elsewhere specified or included, not fortified with vitamins or minerals, unfermented and not containing added spirit, whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter (provided for in subheading 2009.80.60) | 100% |
| 9903.02.81 | Mixtures of juices, other than mixtures of vegetable juices, not fortified with vitamins and minerals, unfermented and not containing added spirit, whether or not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter (provided for in subheading 2009.90.40) | 100% |
Articles the product of Italy:
| 9903.02.82 | Mineral waters and aerated waters, not containing added sugar or other sweetening matter nor flavored (provided for in subheading 2201.10) | 100% |
|---|
Certain Articles Being Removed from List of Sanctioned Products
Effective with respect to articles entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after March 23, 2009, the HTS is modified removing some products from the list of products currently subject to 100% duties (specifically the articles provided for in HTS 9903.02.31, 9903.02.33, 9903.02.35, 9903.02.37, 9903.02.38, 9903.02.39, 9903.02.40, 9903.02.41, 9903.02.42, and 9903.02.47).
According to a comparison of the existing and new HTS Chapter 99 numbers, the following products will no longer be included on the list of products subject to increased duties:
Products listed for the EU-15 in 1999 that will be dropped from the list of products subject to increased duties:
| 0703.10.40 | Onions, other than onion sets or pearl onions not over 16 mm in diameter, and shallots, fresh or chilled |
| 0712.90.10 | Dried carrots, whole, cut, sliced, broken or in powder, but not further prepared |
| 1905.40.00 | Rusks, toasted bread and similar toasted products |
| 2101.30.00 | Roasted chicory and other roasted coffee substitutes and extracts, essences and concentrates thereof |
| 2103.30.40 | Prepared mustard |
Products listed for France, Germany, and Italy in 1999 that will be dropped from the list of products subject to increased duties:
| 2002.10.00 | Tomatoes, whole or in pieces, prepared or preserved otherwise than by vinegar or acetic acid |
Products listed for France and Germany in 1999 that will be dropped from the list of products subject to increased duties:
| 0504.00.00 | Guts, bladders and stomachs of animals (other than fish), whole and pieces thereof, fresh, chilled, frozen, salted, in brine, dried or smoked |
| 2104.10.00 | Soups and broths and preparations thereof |
| 5510.11.00 | Single yarn (other than sewing thread) containing 85% or more by weight of artificial staple fibers, not put up for retail sale |
Product listed for France in 1999 that will be dropped from the list of products subject to increased duties:
| 3506.10.50 | Products suitable for use as glues or adhesives, put up for retail sale, not exceeding 1 kg (other than animal glue, including casein glue, but not including fish glue) |
Certain Chapter 99 Subheadings to be Deleted March 23, 2009
Effective with respect to articles entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after March 23, 2009, HTS Chapter 99, Subchapter III is modified by deleting HTS 9903.02.21 through 9903.02.47. Many of the products covered by these deleted HTS Chapter 99 numbers remain subject to increased duties under the newly added HTS Chapter 99 numbers.
Background
According to a USTR press release, in 1998 the WTO found that the EU's ban on U.S. beef was not supported by science and was thus inconsistent with WTO rules, and in 1999 the U.S. imposed increased duties on a list of EU products in accordance with a WTO authorization. The USTR states that she has decided that it is time to modify the duties to try to encourage a resolution of this longstanding dispute so as finally to provide a fair outcome to the U.S. beef industry, while addressing the economic impact of such long-standing duties on U.S. interests.
The EU amended its ban in 2003, claiming that the ban now complied with WTO requirements; however, the U.S. disagreed. On October 16, 2008, the WTO Appellate Body confirmed that the U.S. has a continuing right to impose trade measures until the dispute is resolved. (See ITT's Online Archives or 10/27/08 news, 08102745, for BP summary of the AB report.)
(Among other things, the Trade and Development Act of 2000 (TDA) contained a provision that requires the USTR to review any such retaliation list and revise it in whole or in part every 180 days, unless (1) the USTR and affected U.S. industries agree that such modifications are unnecessary or (2) resolution of the dispute in question is imminent. See ITT's Online Archives or 08/28/00 news, (Ref:00082566A), for previous BP summary.
In November 2008, the USTR announced that the interagency Section 301 Committee was soliciting public comments on the possible modification of the list of European products subject to increased tariffs in connection with WTO dispute settlement rulings in the U.S.-European Communities beef hormones dispute. Comments were due by December 8, 2008. (See ITT's Online Archives or 11/07/08 news, 08110705, for BP summary of USTR's November 2008 notice.))
1The increased duties will be increasing to 300% (from 100%)
| Roger Wentzel (202) 395-4620 |
| William Busis (202) 395-3150 |
USTR press release (dated 01/15/09) available at http://www.ustr.gov/Document_Library/Press_Releases/2009/January/USTR_Announces_Revised_Trade_Action_in_Beef_Hormones_Dispute.html.
USTR "draft" Federal Register notice (D/N USTR-2008-0036) available at http://www.ustr.gov/assets/Document_Library/Federal_Register_Notices/2009/January/asset_upload_file581_15288.pdf.
USTR "unofficial" modified list of EU products subject to increased duties (dated 01/14/09) available at http://www.ustr.gov/assets/Document_Library/Federal_Register_Notices/2009/January/asset_upload_file64_15289.pdf.