Importers whose cargo is detained by CBP for forced labor concerns may request to move the cargo to a customs bonded warehouse, but the cargo may not move into a Foreign-Trade Zone for storage, CBP said in an Aug. 3 CSMS message.
DHS and its partner agencies need more funding and resources to handle the increasing enforcement scope of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF) said in the first update to its UFLPA strategy. The update, released Aug. 1 and required annually, also outlines new steps CBP is taking to upgrade its enforcement capabilities and describes plans to soon provide more UFLPA compliance guidance to importers.
DHS will add a Chinese battery manufacturer along with a Chinese spice manufacturer and its subsidiary to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, the agency said in a notice released Aug. 1. Camel Group Co., a major manufacturer of car batteries, will be added for working with the Xinjiang government to “recruit, transport, transfer, harbor or receive forced labor or Uyghurs” and other persecuted groups. DHS also will add spice and extract maker ChenGuang Biotech Group Co., Ltd., along with subsidiary Chenguang Biotechnology Group Yanqi Co. Ltd., for sourcing material from Xinjiang or from entities in the region that are involved in a “government labor scheme that uses forced labor.”
The U.S. needs to better prepare for future Chinese retaliation against U.S. trade restrictions, said Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., which could further hurt U.S. imports of items needed for semiconductor production. Sherrill, speaking during a July 20 House Select Committee on China hearing, pointed to China’s recent export restrictions on germanium and gallium -- two metals used to produce semiconductors -- and said she expects more retaliation to come (see 2307060053 and 2307050018). “I think we're going to see more and more instances of China putting our supply chain at risk,” she said.
Canada launched investigations of Nike Canada and Dynasty Gold this week after receiving complaints that both companies’ supply chains have ties to forced labor in China. A Canadian agency said it’s probing allegations that Nike has “supply relationships” with Chinese companies that use Uyghur forced labor and that Dynasty Gold, a mining company, benefited from Uyghur forced labor at a Chinese mine in which it had a majority stake.
U.S. allies want to see a more predictable and consistent American strategy over a range of trade policies, including electric vehicle tax credits, said Helen Zhang, director of the International Strategy Forum, speaking during a launch event for an Atlantic Council report on pressing issues within the U.S.-China technology race. She said it has been “very difficult” for American trading partners to “keep up” with the changing U.S. policies, particularly those that impact American imports of critical minerals.
Chinese online shopping platform Temu has no procedures to comply with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which “all but guarantees” imports from the company violate the UFLPA, the House Select Committee on China said this week. In a new report, the committee said both Temu and Chinese online retailer Shein “rely heavily” on the de minimis exception when shipping packages to the U.S., allowing them to avoid CBP scrutiny of potential forced labor violations.
The Federal Maritime Commission this week released a revised version of its proposed rule on unreasonable carrier conduct to amend and add to a rulemaking that was widely criticized by shippers and lawmakers last year (see 2301250032, 2211090026 and 2210280051). The new supplemental proposed rule offers new definitions, clarifications, edits and additions that the FMC hopes will allow it to better implement a congressional mandate to address ocean carriers that refuse vessel space to shippers.
German container shipper Hamburg Sud must pay nearly $10 million to OJ Commerce, an American e-commerce business, after Hamburg retaliated against OJC for threatening to file a complaint with the Federal Maritime Commission, the FMC’s administrative law judge ruled June 7. The massive fine came after the FMC said Hamburg Sud, owned by major shipping line Maersk, violated the Shipping Act’s anti-retaliation provision and refused to fulfill contract terms.
NEW ORLEANS -- Charge complaints before the Federal Maritime Commission are increasingly trending toward significant settlements or awards, industry officials said, urging shippers to file complaints if they believe they’re facing unfair carrier practices. Carriers are choosing to settle rather than draw the FMC’s attention, they said, especially for complaints involving demurrage or detention fees.