Ukraine is asking for consultations at the World Trade Organization over the U.S. Commerce Department's January determination that Ukraine is dumping carbon and alloy steel wire rod (see 1803130013). The WTO on April 3 published the request, which asks why the two companies that cooperated have antidumping duties of 44.03 percent, while others have 34.98 percent. It also asks why the U.S. took action against wire rod exporting companies in two groups (see 1803210009) to evaluate material injury. The document asks: "Would the United States please clarify how such a methodology comply with WTO rules and principles?" In other action April 3 at the WTO, China officially submitted its safeguard tariffs reacting to U.S. Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum (see 1804020009).
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for March 26-30 in case they were missed.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, speaking on Bloomberg television, implied an exemption for Europe to steel and aluminum tariffs could be linked to a broader trade deal. Ross was responding to a Bloomberg TV reporter who said the European Commission said the U.S. was looking to negotiate the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, commonly called TTIP. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who is in the Senate leadership, tweeted out the March 29 story on March 30. Ross dismissed the idea that reopening TTIP is news. Trump "terminated the Trans-Pacific deal. He did not terminate TTIP. We're open to discussions with the European Commission. That is nothing new. That's a long-standing objective." Last year, the European Commission said it would like to talk again about the TTIP if there's the political will to do so (see 1710170018). Despite the extended timelines normally associated with negotiating comprehensive trade agreements, Ross did not say whether the EU's current tariff exemption would be extended beyond May 1, when the temporary exemption is scheduled to end.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Steel and aluminum tariffs and the announcement of tariffs on Chinese goods are pushing the world toward a global trade war, World Trade Organization Director-General Roberto Azevedo said March 28 on BBC. But there's still time to avoid a trade war, he said, because, for the most part, countries have merely announced tariffs, not imposed them, and are negotiating. "The fact is, that when you announce certain types of measures, and others deem that those measures are not in compliance with their obligations, and threaten to retaliate, that is a problem. It is a big problem. I don’t think anybody believes this is something minor, even in the U.S. administration," he said. "People are beginning to understand, I hope, how serious this is, and the kind of impact it could have on the global economy," he said, and that's why, he thinks, the U.S. is negotiating with countries around the world to find ways to avoid imposing steel and aluminum tariffs.
An additional two presidential proclamations related to Section 232 tariffs on aluminum and steel were published March 28 in the Federal Register. One new detail was released on how companies can make arguments that the steel or aluminum they import should be excluded from tariffs. The proclamation said the commerce secretary can take "into account the regional availability of particular articles, the ability to transport articles within the United States, and any other factors as the Secretary deems appropriate."
The Court of International Trade will hear arguments March 29 on whether it should issue a temporary block of recently imposed Section 232 steel tariffs as they apply to a Miami-based importer. Severstal Export Miami, a subsidiary of the Russian steel manufacturer PAO Severstal, argues that the tariffs are unconstitutional because they weren’t actually meant to address national security -- a fact purportedly belied by President Donald Trump’s own tweets -- and unenforceable for failure to provide fair notice to companies with shipments already on the water.
South Korea agreed to change "how it conducts verification of origin for U.S. products," and establish a working group to resolve future origin verification issues, as part of a deal to renegotiate U.S.-South Korea Free Trade Agreement announced March 25. The changes come on top of an agreement by South Korea to open its auto market by lifting caps on imports that don't match South Korean safety standards (see 1803260005), according to additional details of the agreement in principle released by the U.S. Trade Representative the evening of March 27. The preliminary deal also makes other changes on auto industry trade, including that:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of March 19-25:
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for March 19-23 in case they were missed.