The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will officially suspend the planned increase in Section 301 tariffs on $200 billion worth goods from China that had been set for Jan. 1, the agency said in a notice. That notice said the third tranche of the tariffs will remain at 10 percent for the time being and won't increase to 25 percent until March 2. The delay follows a recent deal reached by the U.S. and China to begin negotiations toward a resolution of the ongoing trade dispute.
A 90-day pause in implementing increased Section 301 tariffs will run from Dec. 1, the White House said as it corrected the record the evening of Dec. 3. National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow had erroneously said that the 90-day delay in increasing tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports would start Jan. 1. That was the day that tariffs were scheduled to rise from an additional 10 percent on the base rate to 25 percent. Jennifer Hillman, a Georgetown Law professor and former general counsel at the Office of the United States Trade Representative, tweeted that the Federal Register will have to be updated to reflect the new deadline, which should fall around March 1.
Section 301 tariffs on certain Chinese goods will remain at 10 percent after Jan. 1, after President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reached a deal to suspend the tariff increase, said the White House in a statement. Under the agreement, concluded Dec. 1 at the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, China will purchase “a not yet agreed upon, but very substantial” amount of agricultural, energy and industrial goods.
The Court of International Trade said in an Oct. 12 ruling that CBP must file a final rule for drawback under the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act with the Office of the Federal Register by Dec. 17. The final rule, except for provisions involving drawback for excise taxes, will be effective when filed, ruled CIT Judge Jane Restani. The excise tax provisions may take effect 60 days after publication.
Canada and the U.S. reached a deal on NAFTA 2.0 late Sept. 30, which was announced a half hour before the deadline to release the text.
Importers will have to pay an additional 10 percent on about 5,700 8-digit tariff lines starting Sept. 24, President Donald Trump said on Sept. 17. "If China takes retaliatory action against our farmers or other industries, we will immediately pursue phase three, which is tariffs on approximately $267 billion of additional imports," said Trump in the statement.
President Donald Trump notified Congress of plans to sign a free trade agreement with Mexico, the White House said. The agreement will also include Canada, “if it is willing.”
Mexico and the U.S. reached an agreement on several NAFTA issues, President Donald Trump said in an Aug. 27 announcement. The two countries found common ground on several contentious issues in recent weeks, including new rules of origin for autos.
The increased Section 232 tariffs on steel from Turkey will take effect at 12:01 a.m. on Aug. 13, the White House said in a proclamation. CBP issued filing instructions for Turkish steel on Aug. 12 in a CSMS message. Importers are to include the classification "9903.80.02 (50% ad valorem duty rate for products of iron and steel that are the product of Turkey)" in addition to the regular Chapter 72 or 73 classifications, the agency said.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative released the final list for the second tranche of Section 301 tariffs on Aug. 7. CBP will begin the collection an extra 25 percent in tariffs on those goods from China starting Aug. 23, the USTR said in its announcement.