The Import Administration is working closely with partner agencies including CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to fight antidumping and countervailing duty evasion and fraud schemes, said Assistant Secretary Paul Piquado at Georgetown Law School’s 2013 International Trade Update Conference in Washington, D.C., Feb. 28. A key tool in this cooperation is the Automated Commercial Environment, he said. The collaboration has resulted in several successful criminal prosecutions related to duty evasion and fraud, he said. (Import Administration is the unit within the International Trade Administration tasked with administering AD/CV duties.)
The Agricultural Marketing Service released the Ocean Shipping Container Availability Report (OSCAR) for the week of Feb. 20-26. 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.
The Fish and Wildlife Service announced tentative U.S. negotiating positions, agenda items, and proposals for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, March 3-14. U.S. priorities include listing polar bears as threatened with extinction in Appendix I, efforts to combat elephant and rhino poaching, and a passport system for musicians who travel with musical instruments made from CITES-listed animal and plant species. The tentative U.S. positions are available here.
The International Trade Commission is asking for comments by about March 9 on public interest factors raised by Neology’s section 337 patent complaint on radio frequency identification product imports. The RFID products at issue are mainly used for electronic vehicle registration and toll collection purposes. Neology is requesting cease and desist and limited exclusion orders against 3M Company, as well as Federal Signal Corporation and its subsidiaries.
The International Trade Commission voted to begin a Section 337 investigation to determine whether imports of compact fluorescent reflector lamps are infringing patents held by Neptun Light. Neptun requested the investigation Jan. 28, alleging the proposed respondents are importing the infringing products from China. Neptun is requesting cease and desist and limited exclusion orders.
The International Trade Administration published notices in the Feb. 28 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):
The International Trade Administration is giving advance notice that it and the International Trade Commission will consider revoking the antidumping duty orders on light-walled rectangular pipe and tube from China (A-570-914), Korea (A-580-859), and Mexico (A-201-836); antidumping duty orders on polyethylene terephthalate film from India (A-533-824) and Taiwan (A-583-837); and countervailing duty orders on polyethylene terephthalate film from India (C-533-825) and China (C-570-914) in their automatic five-year sunset reviews scheduled to begin in April. Advance notice is given because automatic sunset reviews have short deadlines. An order will be revoked unless the ITA finds that revocation would lead to a continuation or recurrence of dumping and the ITC finds that revocation would result in continuation or recurrence of material injury to a U.S. industry. As a result, a negative determination by either the ITA or the ITC would result in the revocation of the order.
The International Trade Administration and the International Trade Commission initiated the five-year Sunset Review of the antidumping duty order on persulfates from China (A-570-847).
The International Trade Administration announced the opportunity to request administrative reviews by April 1 for producers and exporters subject to 16 antidumping duty orders and five countervailing duty orders with March anniversary dates. Affected products include brass sheet and strip, glycine, tissue paper products, and drill pipe.
The International Trade Administration initiated administrative reviews for certain firms subject to antidumping and countervailing duty orders with January anniversary dates. The ITA intends to issue the final results of these reviews no later than Jan. 31, 2014.