The recent trade deal announced between the U.S. and South Korea avoided the worst-case scenarios on the table and maintains comparative advantage with competitors, according to economists and experts on U.S.-Korea relations at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

The Section 232 tariffs on copper and its derivatives appear to have been developed under a greater understanding of how U.S. manufacturing works, according to trade expert Cindy Allen, who appeared on an Aug. 1 "Simply Trade" podcast episode to discuss the numerous U.S. trade actions that occurred last week.

San Francisco-based Caspian, an ABI software vendor and licensed customs broker, is officially launching its AI-informed advisory services for duty drawback and tariff refund processing, according to a recent announcement. The company, which bills itself as "an AI-driven customs compliance startup," says its tools are able to analyze companies' international shipping records and inventory data to find eligible duty refunds that can be submitted as claims within days. Because Caspian is approved by CBP as a tech provider and customs broker, it says it can file claims with CBP on behalf of clients or in support of others' existing trade advisory work.

The American Association of Port Authorities is asking appropriators to restore Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund spending to ports that have traditionally collected more harbor maintenance taxes than they have gotten in projects, and to return to a program of spending on emerging harbors, as laid out in the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2020. The letter also was signed by port directors around the country.

Now that the White House appears to have given more direction on its trade and tariff actions, more companies may transition from a wait-and-see approach to more specific courses of action, trade experts with KPMG said during a July 31 webinar on tariffs and trade complexities.

The National Foreign Trade Council responded to the U.S. hikes in tariffs Aug. 1 (see 2507310081) by saying that agreements to remove some trade barriers are encouraging but "a great deal of work remains to be done to make sure they deliver on those promises and to accelerate efforts to remove discriminatory measures that were not part of those initial understandings.

A July benchmarking survey from the U.S. Fashion Industry Association found that executives from 25 leading U.S. fashion companies have been diversifying their sourcing as part of a wider strategy to hedge against higher tariffs and U.S. trade policy uncertainties.

Five trade groups representing steel producers asked the president not to allow "special arrangements," such as the one promised to the U.K., to eliminate or reduce Section 232 tariff coverage.

The US-China Business Council released its annual member survey, which shows almost all U.S. companies operating in China are concerned about the impact of tariffs on their business. Tariffs jumped from the eighth-highest concern in last year's survey to number two in this year's, with the highest being U.S.-China relations.

Trade observers are waiting for more information about whether Aug. 1 tariffs on Canada and Mexico will include goods that currently qualify for duty-free treatment under USMCA, according to comments by Flexport officials during a July 16 webinar.