A British businessman was sentenced to 33 months in prison for attempting to export to Iran a special component of the Hawk Air Defense Missile, said Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In addition to his prison sentence, Christopher Tappin must also pay an $11,357.14 fine. Tappin reversed his original not guilty plea Nov. 1, admitting his guilt to aiding and abetting the illegal export of defense articles, and waiving his right to appeal his conviction or challenge the sentence handed down.
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the International Trade Administration posted to CBP's website Jan. 9, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching for the listed CBP message number at addcvd.cbp.gov. (CBP occasionally adds backdated messages without otherwise indicating which message was added. ITT will include a message date in parentheses in such cases.)
NEW YORK -- The Consumer Product Safety Commission will soon vote on whether to propose a rule that would overhaul product certification and testing requirements, said Commissioner Nancy Nord at the annual meeting of the U.S. Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel Jan. 9. The rule would require electronic filing of CPSC compliance certificates along with other entry documents, and add new required data elements, she said. It would also require the manufacturer or labeler to file the compliance certificate if the product is directly received by a consumer.
The International Trade Commission is publishing notices in the Jan. 9 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):
Innovation First filed a Section 337 complaint with the International Trade Commission Jan. 4, alleging that robotic toy fish sold by CVS Pharmacy after import from China infringe its trade secrets. According to the complaint, entitled certain robotic toys and components thereof, a former Chinese employee of Innovation First developed the technologies covered by the trade secrets. The employee then left the company, and in violation of the terms of his separation agreement shared the secrets with his new employer, Zuru. CVS Pharmacy is violating Section 337 by importing the infringing products from Zuru for sale in the U.S. Innovation First is requesting a limited exclusion and cease and desist order against CVS Pharmacy.
The International Trade Administration published notices in the Jan. 9 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 extending until March 1 the deadline for domestic interested parties to notify of their intent to participate in the antidumping duty sunset review of fresh tomatoes from Mexico (A-201-840). The deadline was originally set for 15 days after publication of the initiation of the sunset review in the Federal Register, or Dec. 18, but that deadline has already been extended to Feb. 1. Florida tomato growers are currently attempting to terminate the agreement suspending an AD investigation, which has been in place since 1996, in a related changed circumstances review. The ITA said it is extending its sunset review deadlines because of the complexity of the proceedings.
The International Trade Administration issued the preliminary results of its antidumping duty administrative review magnesium metal from China (A-570-896). The only reviewed company, Tianjin Magnesium International Co., did not have any reviewable transactions during the period of review, but the ITA said it will not rescind this review for that company until the final results. These preliminary results are not in effect. The ITA may modify them in the final results of this review and change the estimated AD cash deposit rates for these company.
The International Trade Administration issued the preliminary results of its antidumping duty administrative review of hand trucks and certain parts thereof from China (A-570-891). The only reviewed company, New-Tec Integration (Xiamen) Co., was preliminarily assigned an AD rate of 9.48 percent. The ITA said it intends to rescind this review with respect to two companies1 in the final results. These preliminary results are not in effect. The ITA may modify them in the final results of this review and change the estimated AD cash deposit rates for these company.
The International Trade Administration made a preliminary affirmative antidumping determination that xanthan gum from Austria (A-433-811) is being sold in the U.S. at less than fair value. The ITA found a preliminary AD rate of 17.18 percent, which is effective Jan. 10. CBP is expected to implement these AD cash deposit/bond requirements soon. Pursuant to the ITA's October 2011 final rule, no bond will be accepted in lieu of a cash deposit.