The National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones has long argued that barring goods produced in FTZs from qualifying for USMCA tariff benefits makes no sense, if the goods would otherwise meet rules of origin, and that the restriction puts FTZ production at a disadvantage compared to Mexican and Canadian production.
Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng said her government has filed notice that it is bringing a state-to-state dispute under USMCA over the increase in antidumping and countervailing duties on most Canadian softwood lumber exports. The Commerce Department issued the final results of the reviews in November (see 2112020026).
The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, which has 11 member countries since the U.S. backed out in 2016, has attracted four applications this year, from the United Kingdom, Taiwan, China and, most recently, South Korea. The U.S., which took a leading role in negotiating the high-standard free trade agreement, is unlikely to ask to come back in the next two years, panelists on a Hudson Institute discussion agreed.
The ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee said Congress should take into consideration how an electric vehicle subsidy limited to American-assembled vehicles affects the trading relationships in North America, but Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, acknowledged that Republicans' views on the Build Back Better bill are irrelevant, since none of them plan to vote for it. The House version of Build Back Better gives a richer purchase incentive for U.S.-made cars from union plants, and for U.S.-origin batteries, and then limits the tax credit to U.S.-assembled cars starting in 2027.
The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Dec. 10. The following headquarters rulings were modified recently, according to CBP:
Despite repeated lobbying and threats of tariffs on U.S. exports from Canada and Mexico, the Senate Finance Committee is proposing that a purchase credit for electric vehicles remain more generous for union-made, U.S.-assembled cars and trucks through 2026, and be reserved only for U.S.-made vehicles starting in 2027.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Canada's finance and trade ministers said that an electric vehicle purchase tax credit that excludes Canadian batteries or Canadian-assembled cars abrogates the USMCA, and they asked senators to write the tax credit differently than the House approach. That House tax credit would only be allowed for American-built cars after 2027, and would be more generous for American-built cars from 2023 to 2026.
The Build Back Better Act that passed the House will offer an additional $4,500 tax credit for American-assembled electric vehicles from union plants, and it seems likely that the Senate version will strip the unionized portion of that, given West Virginia Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin's opposition. Georgia, which has two newly elected Democratic senators, also is home to a major electric battery manufacturer and a Kia plant. The Kia plant has not yet announced plans to make an electric car.
The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Dec. 2. The following headquarters rulings were modified recently, according to CBP: