The International Trade Commission published notices in the March 27 Federal Register on the following AD/CV injury, Section 337 patent and other trade proceedings (any notices that warrant a more detailed summary will be in another ITT article):
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative posted comments (here) on possible de minimis competitive needs limitation (CNL) waivers and possible re-designations of articles not eligible for Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) benefits because they exceeded CNL thresholds, as part of the executive branch's 2016/2017 GSP review. Comments were due at midnight March 22. The Trump administration is expected to make effective final decisions regarding the 2016/2017 GSP review by July 1. In another notice, the International Trade Commission said (here) that it won’t provide advice on withdrawn petitions that had requested CNL waivers for certain products under GSP, after USTR rescinded its request for advice on such petitions in a Feb. 17 letter to the ITC (see 1703020045).
Industry groups renewed the push for duty-free treatment for 28 travel goods imported from beneficiary developing countries under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), claiming in a letter (here) to President Donald Trump that inaction costs industry over $200,000 daily in duties paid. The 17 groups, including the American Apparel & Footwear Association, the National Retail Federation and the Outdoor Industry Association, said those duties result in higher expenses for consumers and impair U.S. companies’ ability to hire. “We urge you to immediately issue a proclamation designating all statutorily eligible travel goods products for all GSP-eligible countries in the GSP program,” the groups said to Trump, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and Acting U.S. Trade Representative Steve Vaughan.
Petitioners withdrew the competitive need limitation (CNL) waiver petitions from the 2016/2017 Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) Annual Review for the following products that didn’t surpass CNL thresholds for 2016, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said (here):
Goods of Myanmar origin "entered or withdrawn from warehouse on or after Nov. 13, 2016, should be entered with the benefit" of the Generalized System of Preferences, CBP said in a CSMS message (here). The reinstated GSP benefits are the result of an executive order last year that added Myanmar as a least developed beneficiary developing country (see 1609140032).
CBP on Feb. 15 issued updated internal guidance (here) to allow the filing of protests for first-time post-importation claims for duty benefits under certain free trade agreements and preference programs. The updated guidance, posted by customs lawyer Ted Murphy of Baker & McKenzie to his blog (here), applies to all FTAs and preference programs not covered by the claim process of 19 USC 1520(d). Importers that had their preference claims rejected as non-protestable under the agency’s previous policy “are requested to resubmit their protests to the appropriate field offices within 180 days of the issuance of this guidance,” i.e., by Aug. 14, CBP said.
The International Trade Commission published notices in the Jan. 23 Federal Register on the following AD/CV injury, Section 337 patent and other trade proceedings (any notices that warrant a more detailed summary will be in another ITT article):
The International Trade Commission is investigating whether to add to or remove articles from the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), as well as proposed competitive need limitation (CNL) waivers under the program, the ITC said (here). The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative on Jan. 5 requested the ITC advise on the probable economic effect on total U.S. imports, on U.S. industries producing similar or directly competitive articles, and on U.S. consumers of the elimination of import duties under GSP for five products (see 1701110040). USTR also requested that the ITC investigate probable economic effects of removing glycine from GSP and granting CNL waivers for seven products using the dollar value limit of $175 million. The ITC said it will provide the requested advice and information for the 2016/2017 GSP review by May 5, after holding a public hearing Feb. 21 and a comment period to last until March 3. The ITC will accept requests to testify at the public hearing through Feb. 3, pre-hearing briefs and statements through Feb. 8, post-hearing briefs and statements through Feb. 27, and all other written submissions through March 3, it said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Jan. 9-13 in case they were missed.
The U.S. Trade Representative is making five new products eligible for the Generalized System of Preferences program, removing one product, glycine, from the program, and granting seven products from Indonesia, Ecuador, Brazil and Thailand waivers to remain eligible for GSP, it said in a request for an International Trade Commission investigation related to its 2016/2017 GSP review. The letter, dated Jan. 5, requests an ITC investigation into the economic effects of making the following products eligible for duty benefits when imported from all GSP beneficiary developing countries: