The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force will be scrutinizing five additional sectors for forced labor violations: caustic soda, copper, jujubes, lithium and steel, according to an Aug. 19 DHS report.
Some companies and associations in the solar industry endorsed additional tariffs on Chinese polysilicon, but others expressed concern that allied countries will be hit with overlapping Section 232 tariffs on both imports of polysilicon and solar cells, in public comments to the Bureau of Industry and Security.
The president's trade team has been suggesting that its definition of transshipment is different than what the word has traditionally meant -- that they will assign country of origin based on how much of the finished good was made from local inputs.
Importers of automobiles and auto parts are facing a massive increase in compliance standards as the Trump administration's tariffs on automobiles force importers to reevaluate supply chains to find competitive advantage, compliance experts said during an Aug. 6 webinar.
Exporter Camel Group defended its motion to unredact and re-designate part of the administrative record in its case against its placement on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, arguing on July 18 that the government won't suffer harm if Camel Group's lawyers can share the documents with the company. The exporter claimed that the government's interest in shielding the documents is "tarnished by continued inconsistencies in its designation" (Camel Group Co. v. United States, CIT # 25-00022).
Alexander Fried, trade attorney at the Commerce Department, has left the agency, he announced on LinkedIn. Fried worked as an attorney adviser at Commerce since September 2022, advising the International Trade Administration on various issues, including digital service taxes, implementing the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, UFLPA litigation, and trade remedies investigations and litigation.
How the Trump administration chooses to define transshipment has the potential to redefine the current trading system with Southeast Asian countries, trade lawyers said. The recent trade deal framework with Vietnam contained a 40% tariff rate for "transshipped" goods, which is a different approach than previously employed for transshipment (see 2507080028).
CBP has detained train car components from China intended for use by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, according to reporting by NBC10 Boston. In May, CBP seized imports of car shells and other components made by Chinese state-owned company CRRC, under suspicion that the company violated the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. CRRC MA, the Massachusetts-based subsidiary of CRRC, issued a statement saying that the company has "maintained rigorous compliance reviews of all suppliers and confirms that no entity involved in these shipments is linked to any violation" of UFLPA, according to the TV station's report. The statement said that CRRC MA has been "providing documentation to CBP to demonstrate full compliance," the station reported.
CBP unlawfully excluded importer Agri Spray Drones' entries of drone controllers without explanation, the importer argued in a June 30 complaint at the Court of International Trade (Agri Spray Drones v. United States, CIT # 25-00141).
The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force failed to undertake a transparent process in considering exporter Ninestar's application for delisting from the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, Ninestar told the Court of International Trade on June 26. Ninestar said FLETF's process was neither "fair, transparent," nor "productive," and led the task force to ignore its obligations and the company's rights under the Administrative Procedure Act (Ninestar Corp. v. United States, CIT # 23-00182).