The Senate Finance Committee's chairman and ranking member said it's time to turn their attention to customs modernization, with both saying any bill will need to both enhance enforcement and make legitimate trade move faster and with more certainty.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP released a notice Feb. 14 on its upcoming Forced Labor Technical Expo, to be held March 14-15 in Washington and virtually. “The event will feature industry presentations on the latest technologies in supply chain transparency,” and include panel discussions on “forced labor initiatives and future technologies” featuring CBP, DHS and other government agency officials, CBP said. Registration to attend in person is due March 1, and space is limited, the agency said. The event will also be live streamed by CBP. The agency also included a link to a website for the event, though the page was unavailable as of press time.
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Wiley attorney Tim Brightbill, in a recent webinar on what to expect in trade in 2023, said he expects a bill to make significant changes to antidumping and countervailing duty law to be introduced in Congress soon. The bill, colloquially known as Level the Playing Field Act 2.0, was introduced in the previous Congress by Ohio's two senators. The administration expressed support for the proposal, but it faced skepticism among Republicans in Congress (see 2204220036 and 2104160037).
CBP updated its ACE manufacturer ID Error Code Dictionary to add new condition codes related to the deployment of a new Chinese postal code requirement on March 18. New codes cover instances where the Chinese postal code is invalid or none is submitted, as well as where the postal code is in the Xinjiang Uyghur Administrative Region of China, among other things. The new Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act “Region Alert” will require the Chinese postal code to be submitted with the cargo release and included in the MID for entries with a country of origin of China that use a Chinese MID (see 2301270070).
CBP targeted 282 shipments worth more than $69 million in January 2023, including goods subject to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act and withhold release orders, the agency said in its most recent operational update. The number of entries targeted was lower but the value higher than December's total of 310 entries worth over $59 million (see 2301230028). CBP also seized 1,514 shipments that contained counterfeit goods valued at more than $186 million in January, and completed 27 audits that identified $7.7 million in duties and fees owed to the U.S. government for goods that had been improperly declared, the agency said.
Two Democrats and a Republican are asking the CEO of Shein, a fast-fashion powerhouse, about its use of de minimis and its purchases of Xinjiang cotton. All products made in Xinjiang are barred from entry to the U.S., unless importers can prove they were not made with forced labor, but small packages imported directly by consumers escape CBP scrutiny.
CBP announced it has modified a withhold release order against imports of synthetic disposable gloves manufactured by YTY Industry Holdings, and will now allow gloves from the Malaysian company to enter the U.S. “provided they are otherwise in compliance with U.S. laws,” it said. “Shipments of YTY Group’s synthetic gloves received on or after February 8, 2023, will no longer be detained at U.S. ports of entry,” CBP said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.