Liquidation of imported fabricated steel components from Servicios Industriales González in Nuevo Leon will resume, as the U.S. is satisfied with remediation at the facility after a USMCA rapid response labor complaint.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is publishing a request for comments on the administrative burden of applying for Section 301 exclusions for manufacturing equipment. The comments will be due by July 30.
World Shipping Council CEO Joe Kramek said that his trade group doesn't take a position on whether Chinese practices to support its commercial shipbuilding industry are actionable under Section 301, but it "strongly opposes" the petitioners' proposal that a $1 million fee be levied on Chinese-built ships docking in U.S. ports.
Government subsidies for domestic manufacturing in strategic sectors tend to then need trade protections, former top U.S. trade representative officials from the Trump and Biden administrations agreed.
The U.S. has asked Mexico to review whether workers at the Volkswagen de México, S.A. de C.V. facility in Cuautlancingo, Puebla, are being denied their rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced May 28.
The Government Accountability Office told Sen. Mike Crapo of Idaho, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee, that Congress can't vote to overturn the Japan critical minerals agreement.
Nelson Cunningham, the administration's choice for deputy U.S. trade representative for the Western Hemisphere, Europe, the Middle East, labor and the environment, has had his nomination withdrawn. The position has been empty for more than six months.
After House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith, R-Mo., met with Kenyan President William Ruto, he joined the Senate Finance Committee chairman's call to negotiate a trade liberalizing free trade agreement with Kenya. Finance Committee Chair Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., earlier in the week asked the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative to upgrade its trade negotiations with Kenya so that it's working toward a goal of a comprehensive trade agreement (see 2405210051).
A Kelley Drye attorney, who used to be part of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force due to his role at the U.S. Trade Representative's Office of Labor Affairs, said the recent 26 additions to the FLETF's Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act entity list are significant because they are not companies directly employing Uyghurs harvesting cotton or in fabric mills or cut and sew operations.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative decided that 164 exclusions from Section 301 China tariffs -- including for fabrics, bras, electric motors, sterile drapes, hunting stands, bicycle trailers, auto rearview mirrors and more -- will continue to avoid the tariffs through May 31, 2025, while 265 exclusions will expire June 14.