The Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated Oct. 2. The most recent ruling is dated Oct. 1. The following headquarters rulings not involving carriers were modified on Oct. 2, according to CBP:
Cars assembled by Volvo in Sweden as part of a “knockdown operation” using subassemblies manufactured in China are products of China and are subject to Section 301 tariffs, CBP said in a recent ruling. The “complex assembly process” occurs in China, not Sweden, so that’s where substantial transformation happens for the purposes of determining country of origin, CBP said in HQ H302821, issued July 26 and published by CBP on Oct. 2.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative granted 10 of 15 categories of Chinese-sourced Mac Pro components Apple sought to have excluded from 25 percent Section 301 List 3 tariffs in July (see 1907260036), agency records show. Of the five denials, USTR rejected all because Apple “failed to show that the imposition of additional duties on the particular product would cause severe economic harm to you or other U.S. interests,” said Sept. 23 notices posted recently in the public docket. The denials were for Mac Pro CPU heat sinks, BIOS printed circuit boards, AC power cables, caster wheel assemblies and data cables, the docket shows. Waivers were granted on the 10 other requests in mid-September. Apple didn’t comment.
More than a dozen companies and business groups have submitted comments ahead of an Oct. 2 hearing on how China is complying with World Trade Organization protocols -- and they all agree China has work to do.
CBP created Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1916 on Oct. 1, containing 76 Automated Broker Interface records and 18 Harmonized Tariff Schedule records, it said in a CSMS message. The update includes recently announced exclusions and other changes related to the Section 301 tariffs (see 1909180004). Another change is related to the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, CBP said. Modifications required by the verification of the 2019 HTS and to support partner government agency message set functionality are included as well.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 23-27 in case they were missed.
Football fans will “need to be aware” this fall that Section 301 tariffs ranging from 15 percent to 30 percent on Chinese goods “will drive up the price of everything from footballs and TVs to portable grills and fanwear,” the National Retail Federation blogged on Sept. 30. “Fans who prefer to watch the game from the comfort of their couch won’t be spared,” NRF said. Overall, “Americans would pay $711 million more than they otherwise would for ... [televisions] hit with 25 percent tariffs,” it said, citing a Trade Partnership report it commissioned in June. Tariffs of 15 percent took effect Sept. 1 on finished TVs from China, among other goods on List 4A. “Think of these tariffs as 15- to 30-yard penalties between you and the goal of a fun weekend afternoon with your favorite team,” NRF said. “As you take a break during halftime, take a moment to tell Congress to end the trade war and remove all tariffs.”
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
CBP added the ability in ACE for importers to file entries with recently excluded goods in the second tranche of Section 301 tariffs on Sept. 29, it said in a CSMS messages. For the second tranche exclusions, filers of imported products that were granted an exclusion (see 1909180004) should report the regular Chapters 39, 73, 76, 84, 85, 86, 87 and 90 Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, as well as subheading 9903.88.17. “Importers shall not submit the corresponding Chapter 99 HTS number for the Section 301 duties when" subheading 9903.88.17 is submitted, CBP said.
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is publishing two new sets of product exclusions from the 25 percent Section 301 tariffs on goods from China (see 1909300009). The product exclusions apply retroactively to when each tranche initially took effect. That was July 6, 2018, for the first tranche, and Aug. 23, 2018, for the second tranche.