President Donald Trump's directive in his proclamation expanding Section 232 steel tariffs to assess penalties for the misclassification of entries resulting in non-payment of the duties without regard for "evidence of mitigating factors" may run afoul of existing customs laws, trade lawyers said. Even if the directive stays within the bounds of the current statutory scheme, expect more prior disclosures and proactive steps to ensure the proper customs treatment of steel entries, the lawyers added.
The U.S. will consider a revival of Section 301 investigations on digital services taxes in several countries, as well as potential tariffs to counter “trade and regulatory practices” in those and other countries that “discriminate against” or “disproportionally affect” U.S. companies, under a memo signed by President Donald Trump Feb. 21.
President Donald Trump, in a meandering speech at an investors conference in Miami Feb. 19, said he'd be announcing "tariffs on cars and semiconductors and chips and pharmaceuticals, drugs, and pharmaceuticals, and lumber, probably, and some other things, over the next month, or sooner -- and it'll have a big impact in America."
Improving trade for U.S. cars in Europe is "clearly the priority" for American trade negotiators, according to European Union Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic, who had a four-hour meeting Feb. 19 with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, U.S. trade representative nominee Jamieson Greer and Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council.
Howard Lutnick is now the commerce secretary, after the Senate voted 51-45 to confirm him the evening of Feb. 18. All the Republicans present at the time of the vote endorsed Lutnick.
Democrats from the Pacific Northwest, California, Illinois, New York and Colorado say wineries are already being harmed as province-run liquor stores in Canada ban American wines from their shelves due to the 25% tariff threat over migration, now in abeyance.
President Donald Trump said that he will "probably" say more about the scope of tariffs on cars "on April 2, but it'll be in the neighborhood of 25%," in response to a question at a press conference Feb. 18.
Correction: Steel and steel derivatives from Turkey will for the time being only face 25% Section 232 tariffs, unchanged from before President Donald Trump’s Feb. 11 proclamation upping tariffs for some countries and a new list of derivative products (see 2502140025 and 2502140066).
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
President Donald Trump's plan to remove the de minimis exemption from goods made in China and Hong Kong may just be the start of a bigger push to remove that exemption from other countries, according to trade experts speaking during a Feb. 13 webinar sponsored by ShipHero, a warehouse management system provider for e-commerce and third-party logistics firms.