U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced that consultations have begun with Japan on Section 232 tariffs on Japanese steel and aluminum. They said that the solutions will be aimed at strengthening "our democratic alliance," and the statement says that Japan and the U.S. share "similar national security interests." Japan, Canada, the European Union and other longtime allies of the U.S. were insulted that the Section 232 tariffs, which purportedly are to protect national security, applied to their countries.
The Customs Modernization Act is a bit of a misnomer, a Sidley Austin advisory says, encouraging firms to tell Sen. Bill Cassidy's office that changes are needed to make it beneficial to importers. The discussion draft of the bill was released so that it wouldn't produce unintended consequences for importers or businesses that provide services to importers, the Louisiana Republican's spokesman said (see 2111030035).
The former minister counselor for trade affairs in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing told an audience that in the last few years, Chinese government officials "feel like they've outflanked us on the trade front." James Green, who was speaking on a Flexport webinar on the future of U.S.-China trade policy, said that officials were pleasantly surprised that the tariffs on most exports to the U.S. did not hurt their economy more. And, he said, between sealing the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and applying to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, they also feel like they have other options for exporting when things with the U.S. sour.
Thea Lee, the long-time AFL-CIO trade policy director who is now leading the Labor Department's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB), acknowledged that apparel companies have challenges in avoiding child labor and forced labor because "it's so ubiquitous" in the sector. She said one way to try to avoid "reputational, legal and operational damage" is to identify the good players. She recommended Better Work, a program to improve working conditions funded by the International Labor Organization and the World Bank. It covers 1,700 factories in nine countries. Lee said the U.S. government helps fund the program in Haiti, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Jordan and Vietnam.
Executive Assistant Commissioner AnnMarie Highsmith of CBP's Office of Trade reiterated that CBP is seeking industry input on its 21st Century Customs Framework (see 2109230031), but made no mention of Sen. Bill Cassidy's discussion draft of a Customs Modernization Act that seems to cover a lot of the same ground (see 2111030035). The two areas on which no CBP discussion draft has yet been released are on providing CBP with more enforcement flexibility so that the agency can avoid "untimely and ineffective enforcement," she said; and a proposal on alternate sources of funding so that CBP isn't so reliant on annual appropriations. A CBP official had said in September that the agency may revisit the funding question after other portions of eventual legislation are enacted (see 2109230031). "It will be difficult to come to a final product that feels like success for everyone, but a collaborative solution is our goal and I’m committed to it," she said, at a keynote speech during a virtual conference of the U.S. Fashion Industry Association Nov. 9. Highsmith also encouraged USFIA members to give suggestions on how CBP can unkink the supply chain knots at ports. "CBP is closely monitoring the rising costs of shipping, particularly in the maritime environment," she said, and is working with port officials "to expedite cargo clearance."
David Spooner, Washington counsel for the U.S. Fashion Industry Association, said that while the U.S. trade representative's China policy speech was underwhelming, he doesn't think the possibility of renewing 549 exclusions that expired at the end of last year will be the only olive branch to importers hurt by the China trade war. "Will we see other [expired] exclusions open to renewal? A new window open for exclusions? I hear 'yes.' When that will happen, and what that will look like, remains unclear," Spooner said at a virtual USFIA conference Nov. 9.
Ahead of a planned trip to India Nov. 22 by U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, the Alliance for Trade Enforcement is asking her to make sure that the U.S.-India Trade Policy Forum "eliminates significant trade barriers in India to expand economic opportunities for U.S. workers and businesses."
Fifteen Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee are asking executives at 62 U.S. companies that import clothing from Haiti to ask their suppliers if they are complying with health insurance and social security contribution requirements. The letter -- led by Reps. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey and Terri Sewell of Alabama and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Earl Blumenauer of Oregon, and released to the public Nov. 8 -- says that independent reports found that 84% of factories are not making the required contributions, and some workers have died because they did not have insurance when they fell ill. "We write to you because your companies benefit from those trade programs and rely on Haitian employers and garment workers to create your products, and thus, you have a vested interest in and unique opportunity to help improve and strengthen U.S.-Haiti garment supply chains. As you know, U.S. trade policies have increasingly prioritized collaboration across supply chains to improve labor standards," they said. They asked executives to respond to the letter by Dec. 1. The companies included Calvin Klein, Carters, Cintas, Fruit of the Loom, Hanes, Jockey, Li & Fung, Reebok, Target and Walmart.
Rep. Suzan DelBene, chair of the generally pro-trade New Democrat Coalition, told a webinar audience that reaching an international agreement to lower tariffs on environmental goods and services would be good for U.S. companies, since the U.S. has lower tariffs on these goods than the European Union and China. She said that the European Union and China both export more environmental goods than the U.S. does.
The bipartisan infrastructure package that passed the House Nov. 6 will dedicate $17.4 billion to ports, Coast Guard facilities, inland waterways, and land ports of entry, and flood and environmental projects from the Army Corps of Engineers, with much of the funds expected to be spent over a three- to five-year horizon.