The Court of International Trade on Jan. 30 said that for drawback purposes the 10-digit Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheadings should be read starting with their directly adjacent text and not the superior indented text. Judge Claire Kelly said the "plain meaning" of the statute governing substituted unused merchandise drawbacks refers to the "words describing the article adjacent to the 10-digit number."
A domestic producer coalition seeks the imposition of new antidumping duties on paper plates from China, Thailand and Vietnam, as well as new countervailing duties on paper plates from China and Vietnam, it said in petitions filed with the Commerce Department and the International Trade Commission Jan. 24. Commerce will now decide whether to begin AD/CVD investigations, which could result in the imposition of permanent AD/CVD orders and the assessment of AD and CVD on importers. The American Paper Plate Coalition, consisting of AJM Packaging, Aspen Products, Dart Container, Hoffmaster Group, Huhtamaki Americas and Unique Industries, filed the petition.
The antidumping and countervailing duty orders on wooden cabinets and vanities from China covers cabinets and vanities made from phragmites, a type of reed, the Commerce Department said in a Jan. 12 scope ruling that found merchandise exported by Nanjing Kayling subject to AD/CVD.
The Commerce Department issued notices in the Federal Register on its recently initiated antidumping duty investigations on glass wine bottles from Chile, China and Mexico (A-337-808, A-570-162, A-201-862), and its countervailing duty investigation on glass wine bottles from China (C-570-163). The CVD investigation covers entries for the calendar year 2022. The AD investigations on Chile and Mexico cover entries Oct. 1, 2022, through Sept. 30, 2023, and the AD investigation on China covers entries April 1, 2023, through Sept. 30, 2023.
The Court of International Trade on Jan. 19 granted a joint motion that results in duty-free treatment for swimsuits reimported by SGS Sports under Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading 9801.00.20. The ruling avoids a bench trial over whether the swimsuits qualify for the subheading as U.S. goods returned to the country.
Ending most favored nation status for Chinese imports -- as advocated for by the House Select Committee on China and some other China hawks in Congress -- would increase consumer prices for laptops and smart phones by more than $100, and cause purchases of those goods to fall sharply, according to a recent study commissioned by the Consumer Technology Association.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control on Jan. 18 updated guidance related to an expanded ban on imports of Russian seafood announced in December (see 2312220007). The update to OFAC’s frequently asked question adds several new tariff subheadings to the lists of tariff provisions for pollock and other seafood to which the ban may apply.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is amending an exclusion from Section 301 tariffs to align it with recent changes to the relevant Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading (see 2401020049). The change affects the exclusion under U.S Note 20(ttt)(iii)(27) to subchapter III of Chapter 99, which had covered goods of subheading 2929.90.5090 and now covers goods of subheading 2929.90.5095 for entries on or after Jan. 1.
After members of Congress were blindsided by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative backing away from digital trade advocacy, they are taking no chances in spelling out their desire that the agency push for a continued moratorium on tariffs on digital goods. The World Trade Organization has renewed that moratorium since 1998, but some member countries want to start collecting duties on the sale of streaming movies, software as a service, and more.
The World Customs Organization is considering changes to the tariff nomenclature that underlies the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the U.S. and over 200 other country tariff schedules around the world to potentially make classification easier and allow for more detail and accuracy in the identification of goods.