Two Section 232 investigations launched March 10 by the Commerce Department -- one on copper, the other on lumber -- serve as harbingers of potentially more trade activity to come, attorneys with the law firm Pillsbury said during a webinar on "DC Disrupted: Upcoming Tariffs & Trade Actions," said after notices seeking comments on the investigations had been posted.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
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Section 232 tariffs on a new list of steel and aluminum “derivatives” outside of Chapters 73 and 76 are now set to take effect, after the Commerce Department released a notice that “adequate systems are in place to fully, efficiently, and expediently process and collect tariff revenue for covered articles for both steel and aluminum.”
Republicans voted in the House to say that there will be no more calendar days in the rest of this session of Congress, through the end of 2025, in a procedural gambit directly blocking the ability of critics of President Donald Trump's tariffs on Canada and Mexico to challenge that policy.
All Section 232 quota and tariff-rate quota entries must be presented to CBP by 4:30 p.m. today, local port time, to avoid tariffs that snap back into effect March 12 for certain countries, said CBP in a CSMS message. While Section 232 country exemptions and TRQs for Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, EU countries, Japan, Mexico, South Korea and the U.K. expire at midnight, CBP regulations require that quota entries be filed only during CBP’s official office hours.
Section 232 tariffs on the new steel and aluminum “derivatives” outside of Chapters 73 and 76 will take effect at 12:01 a.m. tonight, CBP said in a pair of CSMS messages. The March 12 effective date is in line with the other Section 232 duty increases announced in February, including an end to all country-specific quotas and exclusions and an increase in aluminum tariffs to 25%.
Section 232 tariffs on a new list of steel and aluminum “derivatives” outside of Chapters 73 and 76 are now set to take effect, after the Commerce Department released a notice that “adequate systems are in place to fully, efficiently, and expediently process and collect tariff revenue for covered articles for both steel and aluminum.”
President Donald Trump threatened to double Section 232 tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum to 50%, starting March 12, after Ontario placed a 25% surcharge on electricity exported to Michigan, Minnesota and New York. However, Ontario Premier Rob Ford later dropped the surcharge, and Trump told White House reporters he "probably" would not follow through with the threat as a result.
Two pro-trade Democrats on the House Ways and Means Committee reintroduced a bill that would restrict the president's ability to use Section 232 to impose tariffs without Congress' consent. Four other House Democrats are co-sponsoring the bill.