The Agricultural Marketing Service released the Ocean Shipping Container Availability Report (OSCAR) for the week of Oct. 24-30. The weekly report contains data on container availability for westbound transpacific traffic at 18 intermodal locations in the U.S.1 from the eight member carriers of the Westbound Transpacific Stabilization Agreement (WTSA).2 Although the report is compiled by AMS, it covers container availability for all merchandise, not just agricultural products.
Circuit protection product manufacturer Littelfuse will pay $180,000 pursuant to a settlement with the Bureau of Industry of Security of Export Administration Regulations violations. Between 2006 and 2008, Littelfuse exported $90,017.96 worth of liquid crystal polymer, which is classified under ECCN 1C008.b and controlled for national security (NS) reasons, to the Philippines without the required BIS licenses, BIS alleged. In so doing, Littelfuse committed 37 violations of Section 764.2(a) of the EAR (Unlicensed Exports of an Item Controlled for National Security Reasons). BIS was made aware of the alleged violations through a voluntary self-disclosure made by Littelfuse.
Several Vietnamese exporters appealed the Court of International Trade’s affirmance of the use of zeroing methodology in the 2008-09 administrative review of the antidumping duty order on frozen warmwater shrimp from Vietnam (A-552-802). In its Aug. 2 ruling in Grobest & I-Mei Industrial v. U.S., CIT remanded the ITA’s decision not to individually review Grobest. The International Trade Administration subsequently initiated a review of Grobest on Oct. 17 in response to the court order. But CIT also affirmed the ITA’s use of zeroing in the administrative review, in light of its February opinion in Union Steel v. U.S. that the ITA adequately explained its practice of zeroing in administrative reviews but not investigations. The Vietnamese appellants are only challenging the zeroing aspect of the Aug. 2 ruling.
The chief financial officer of a Georgia-based paper supply company was arraigned Oct. 23 on charges of conspiracy to import paper products from China with fraudulent invoices and bills of lading, and to avoid customs duties on such products, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Jennifer Chen, 44, was indicted Oct. 17 by a federal grand jury charging her, her ex-husband Chi Cheng "Curtis" Gung, 45, and their Georgia-based paper company Apego, with conspiracy and 12 counts of importing notebooks and filler paper from China, which are subject to the antidumping duty order on lined paper products from China, using false documents.
Mexico's Diario Oficial of Oct. 24, lists notices from the Secretary of the Economy as follows:
The International Trade Commission is publishing notices in the Oct. 24 Federal Register on the following AD/CV injury, Section 337 patent, and other trade proceedings (any notices that warrant a more detailed summary will appear in another ITT article):
According to the International Trade Commission, a Section 337 patent complaint on certain hydroxyprogesterone caproate and products containing the same was filed on behalf of K-V Pharmaceutical Company on Oct. 23. The proposed respondents are:
The International Trade Administration published notices in the Oct. 24 Federal Register on the following AD/CV proceedings (any notices that announce changes to AD/CV duty rates, scope, affected firms, or effective dates will be detailed in another ITT article):
On Oct. 23 the Food and Drug Administration posted new and revised versions of the following Import Alerts on the detention without physical examination of:
The Food and Drug Administration announced its fiscal year 2013 abbreviated new drug application (ANDA), prior approval supplement (PAS), drug master file (DMF), and backlog fees, pursuant to the Generic Drug User Fee Amendments (GDUFA) of 2012. The fees are effective Oct. 1, 2012, and will run until Sept. 30, 2013. Going forward, FDA will publish GDUFA fees 60 days prior to the beginning of each fiscal year, it said. GDUFA fees are expected to generate $299 million annually for FDA. The fees will be used to conduct activities such as increased inspections of foreign facilities.