The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the weeks of Feb. 10-16, Feb. 17-23, Feb. 24 - March 2 and March 3-9:
Two Section 232 investigations launched March 10 by the Commerce Department -- one on copper, the other on lumber -- serve as harbingers of potentially more trade activity to come, attorneys with the law firm Pillsbury said during a webinar on "DC Disrupted: Upcoming Tariffs & Trade Actions," said after notices seeking comments on the investigations had been posted.
CBP updated Harmonized System Update 2509 created on March 7 (see 2503070015). The update says that as of March 7, the temporary exclusion from the additional ad valorem IEEPA duties in place for in-transit shipments ended. Consequently, HTS 9903.01.23 is no longer available for merchandise entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, after 12:01 a.m. EST on March 7. All shipments that are country of origin China and Hong Kong are required to submit the 9903.01.24 tariff as well as remit payment of the additional 20% duty, unless the shipment meets the other exclusions (donation, information materials, Chapter 98).
Powdered sugar processed and packaged in Mexico using U.S.-origin refined sugar imported by Batory Foods and Rafi Industries is not subject to the agreements suspending antidumping and countervailing duties on sugar from Mexico (A-201-845/C-201-846), the Commerce Department announced in a Feb. 28 scope ruling. The department also recommended imposing a certification requirement for the imported sugar.
The Commerce Department is ending antidumping duties on mattresses from Indonesia (C-560-836), after a recent Court of International Trade decision caused rates from the final determination of Commerce's investigation to fall to zero for Indonesian exporters. Zero rates in a final determination result in termination of an investigation and no resulting order. The AD order that was at the center of the court case was published May 14, 2021.
President Donald Trump told reporters that a 250% tariff on dairy products imported into Canada makes it impossible to sell U.S. dairy there, and that "a tremendously high tariff" on lumber in Canada also makes it impossible to export that product to Canada. He called U.S. exports to Canada in those two categories "almost nonexistent." He said he is going to set U.S. tariffs at the same levels.
Given that more than half of imports from Canada and Mexico don't claim USMCA preferences, trade lawyers and customs experts are expecting a sharp and rapid increase in entries that claim the preference.
President Donald Trump is excluding Canadian and Mexican exports from 10% or 25% duties that began March 4, as long as those goods can qualify for USMCA benefits. The change starts at 12:01 a.m. March 7.
CBP plans to double down on implementing President Donald Trump's America First trade policy, according to federal officials speaking during the quarterly meeting of the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee, held in Atlanta on March 5.
Rep. Linda Sanchez of California, the top Democrat on the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee, criticized President Donald Trump's executive actions, predecessor Joe Biden's rulemaking and a past bill that moved through Ways and Means that aimed to curtail de minimis in various ways. She called them all "half-measures or simply playing Whac-A-Mole with specific countries."