The Commerce Department issued notices in the Federal Register on its recently initiated antidumping duty and countervailing duty investigations on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether or not assembled into modules, from India, Indonesia and Laos (A-533-942/C-533-943, A-560-846/C-560-847, A-553-003/C-553-004). The AD investigations cover entries July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025. The CVD investigations cover entries in calendar year 2024.
The Commerce Department issued antidumping and countervailing duty orders on certain brake drums from China (A-570-174/C-570-175) and Turkey (A-549-853/C-549-854). The orders set permanent antidumping and countervailing duties that will remain in place unless revoked by Commerce, which may take place only under certain conditions, such as a sunset or changed circumstances review. Commerce will now begin conducting annual administrative reviews, if requested, to determine final assessments of AD/CVD on importers and make changes to cash deposit rates.
The U.S. filed a motion for default judgment at the Court of International Trade on Aug. 10 against importer Rago Tires, seeking $56,435.48 for gross negligence in classifying its tires as not subject to antidumping duties and countervailing duties (United States v. Rago Tires, CIT # 24-00043).
U.S. tariffs won't apply to gold, President Donald Trump said in an Aug. 11 Truth Social post, despite a July 31 CBP ruling that found that gold bars are subject to reciprocal tariffs if they have been processed (see 2508080017).
The White House released President Donald Trump’s executive order extending the application of 10% reciprocal tariffs under subheading 9903.01.25 to China. The suspension of China’s higher country-specific tariff under subheading 9903.01.63 – currently set at 34% but previously as high as 125% -- will now remain in effect until 12:01 a.m. Nov. 10, the executive order said.
The U.S. filed a motion for default judgment on Aug. 7 against importer E-Dong, U.S.A. in pursuit of $234,748.30 in lost revenue due to the importer's negligent failure to pay a federal excise tax on its "Korean distilled beverage soju." The government said E-Dong lied on customs forms by misclassifying the distilled liquor as rice wine, adding that these misstatements "constitute negligent violations for failure to exercise reasonable care and competence" (United States v. E-Dong, U.S.A., CIT # 24-00066).
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
A recent CBP ruling saying gold bars are subject to reciprocal tariffs has sent shock waves through the gold futures market this week, according to news reports.
As importers seek to comply with the many tariffs that have been introduced or modified in recent months, they will need to be mindful of entry construction if their goods are eligible for duty drawback, according to Tim Vorderstrasse, a licensed customs broker with Flexport, speaking during his company's Aug. 6 webinar on tariffs.
CBP improperly classified importer Air Distribution USA's shisha molasses, also known as "hookah tobacco," as a type of "smoking tobacco" and erroneously subjected the shisha molasses to federal excise taxes on "pipe tobacco," Air Distribution argued in a complaint last month at the Court of International Trade (Air Distribution USA v. United States, CIT # 25-00063).