Half the companies surveyed by the U.S.-China Business Council say that it's too soon to tell if the tariffs in the China trade war were worth it for the gains won at the negotiating table, even as 78 percent of respondents welcome the phase one deal. Companies see the phase one deal -- which takes effect Feb. 14 -- as something that will prevent more tariff hikes. Of those who are directly affected by the commitments in phase one -- 60 percent of the companies -- the purchase promises matter most, with 30 percent saying that's the most relevant plank. Protection of intellectual property was a close second, with 27 percent of companies saying that's most important.
Nine pro-free-trade Democrats sent a letter to the White House Feb. 13 demanding that the administration release its autos Section 232 report -- as required by law -- and abandon the idea of hiking tariffs on imported autos and auto parts. The letter says that despite the White House receiving the report a year ago, it's hidden from Congress and the public. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said earlier this week that he still wants the auto 232 report, despite the administration's claim it's protected by executive privilege (see 2002120023).
A bipartisan group of lawmakers, led by Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J., and Rep. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, introduced a bill Feb. 13 that would allow importers of European goods hit by the Airbus tariffs to receive refunds for goods that were on the water at the time the tariff hikes were announced. They are calling the bill “For Accurate Import Relief To Aid Retailers and Importers of Foreign Freights” (FAIR TARIFF) Act. The Cheese Importers Association of America previously voiced its support for the bill (see 2001290043).
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said that while he has not discussed the idea of raising the U.S. bound tariff rate at the World Trade Organization, the administration better not be thinking of bypassing Congress on this strategy. Grassley, who was responding to a reporter's question at a press roundtable Feb. 13, said flatly, “They can't do it without Congress's approval.” A report from Bloomberg said the administration is considering changes to the bound rate.
House Ways and Means Committee ranking member Kevin Brady, R-Texas, said he hopes India's eligibility for the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program is restored, but cautioned that India is hard to pin down on opening market access -- which is the administration's requirement for even partial restoration. Brady touched on tariffs, negotiations and implementation of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement as he took questions from reporters late Feb. 12 at the Capitol.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, testifying on the president's budget at a hearing Feb. 12, was asked repeatedly about what the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development might do on taxing digital companies, precluding France's digital services tax.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative released an extensive critique of the appellate body at the World Trade Organization. But the administration offered no proposals for what other countries could do to satisfy it so that it would allow the appellate body to be rejuvenated. Currently, there is no quorum for the body, so it cannot hear appeals. Many of the complaints are about how the WTO has ruled on antidumping and countervailing duty cases in the U.S. -- the report mentions “zeroing,” a method used in antidumping, nearly 100 times. The report said, “The United States is publishing this Report -- the first comprehensive study of the Appellate Body’s failure to comply with WTO rules and interpret WTO agreements as written -- to examine and explain the problem, not dictate solutions.”
The U.S.-Japan mini-trade deal covers just 5 percent of trade between the partners, according to Bruce Hirsh, a principal at Tailwind, but he said the likelihood of further progress is small. Hirsh spoke while at the National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones legislative summit on Feb. 11. “Japan wasn’t interested in doing a bilateral deal at all, but they recognized there was only so long they could keep the U.S. at bay,” he said. He said that what Japan gave to the U.S. “fell a little bit short of TPP,” or the Trans-Pacific Partnership. He said beef and pork got TPP parity, but rice got nothing and “dairy got a lot, but not everything.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., is complaining that he has not gotten a response from the FDA and CBP to a letter he sent in November asking what the agencies are doing to stop unsafe non-prescription drugs imported from China (see 1911180056). Schumer, who did a press event Feb. 10 in western New York to highlight the issue, noted that his previous press event in November got results locally, but that's not enough. “After we pushed Dollar Tree stores in Manhattan on this issue, they were seen clearing the shelves, but we can’t do this store-by-store, the company needs to do it on its own and the Food and Drug Administration needs to keep the pressure on. The stores across Western New York should not be allowed to continue receiving these questionable or even dangerous over-the-counter drugs, and that’s where Customs and Border Protection need to hold them to account, too,” he said. CBP declined to comment on why it has not responded yet.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said that the Trump administration's argument that the Section 232 report justifying tariffs on imported autos is protected by executive privilege (see 2001210054) is not the last word. Grassley, who was speaking Feb. 11 on a conference call with reporters, said he will keep pushing, though he has not yet contacted the White House or the Commerce Department. He said the next step is to consult with Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., the top Democrat on the Finance Committee.