Two Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee asked Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative nominee Jamieson Greer to "commit to putting in place a transparent and objective process that protects America’s small businesses and workers" if they decide to grant exclusions to new tariffs imposed by Donald Trump.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative concluded that China's intervention in its shipbuilding and logistics sectors -- and its plans for dominance in shipbuilding -- unreasonably burden and restrict U.S. commerce.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative released a trade strategy to combat forced labor, which includes policy successes during the Biden administration and "areas for potential future action" for the next administration, it announced in a Jan. 13 news release.
Textile industry representatives questioned the logic of the Section 301 investigation on Nicaragua's human rights and labor rights violations, arguing that while they deplore the despotism of Nicaragua's leaders, none of the actions burden or restrict U.S. commerce. Rather, if the government were to decide that Nicaragua's violations merited the withdrawal of tariff benefits for its apparel exports, that action is what would burden U.S. commerce.
Rep. Linda Sánchez, D-Calif., who joined the House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee in 2021, is the new ranking member, following Rep. Earl Blumenauer's retirement.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on Jan. 8 heard oral argument in the massive Section 301 litigation, primarily probing the litigants' positions regarding how to interpret the term "modify" in the statute and whether the statute allows the U.S. trade representative to impose duties in response to retaliatory measures from China (HMTX Industries v. United States, Fed. Cir. # 23-1891).
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative published a series of policy papers focused on improving supply chain resilience. The series, titled Adapting Trade Policy for Supply Chain Resilience: Responding to Today’s Global Economic Challenges, features six papers informed by public hearings the agency held earlier this year (see 2405010016 and 2405020075). These policy papers "remind us of where we have traveled, acknowledge the challenges that shape our journey today, and light our path ahead to better serving all Americans for generations to come," U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai said.
Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., introduced House Resolution 2 this week, to create a Joint Ad Hoc Committee to design a plan where the functions and responsibilities of the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative would be moved to the legislative branch, since the Constitution gives the power to regulate trade to Congress.
A new Section 301 investigation on Chinese legacy chips may lead to a tariff regime that could create havoc, according to Sidley Austin's Ted Murphy, who specializes in trade and customs.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative asked the International Trade Commission to study the "distributional effects of goods and services trade and trade policy on U.S. micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises," particularly those that are women-owned, minority-owned (including by a person with a disability or gay- or trans-owned) and those in rural locations.