New legislation aimed at boosting US steel production proposes imposing tariffs on imports of carbon-intensive steel. Introduced in Johnstown, PA by California Rep. Ro Khanna, the Modern Steel Act, introduced by a group of House Democrats, would offer funding and incentives for the construction of new facilities producing near-zero emissions iron and/or steel, using cutting edge technologies like hydrogen direct reduction.
The leaders of the House Select Committee on China are calling on the Commerce Department to investigate the threat posed by Chinese wi-fi routers made by TP-Link Technologies. The company is subject to draconian national security laws in China and can be forced to hand over sensitive US information by Chinese intelligence officials, committee chairman John Moolenaar (R-Mich) and ranking Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi (Ill) wrote in a letter to Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo is raising concerns that China is distorting the market for mature node semiconductors by overproducing the chips. She told investors at a roundtable discussion that China’s non-market actions are preventing US companies and those in in US ally countries, from competing on a level playing field. To combat China’s practices, Ms. Raimondo said the Administration will continue to impose targeted tariffs on semiconductors imported from China.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore) has introduced much-anticipated bipartisan legislation to tighten imports requirements for low-value packages in order to close the so- called de minimis loophole. The bill would prohibit the use of the $800 de minimis threshold to import certain types of goods, including goods that are import-sensitive or subject to additional trade remedies.
Continuing its efforts to highlight what it labels “ongoing genocide and crimes against humanity “against Uyghurs and other religious and ethnic minority groups in the Uyghur Region of Western China, The US Department of Homeland Security announced the addition of five Chinese entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List, bringing the total entities listed to 73. Effective August 9, 2024, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will apply a rebuttable presumption that goods produced by the five firms, a copper miner, a constructions engineering firm, and three magnesium-related concerns, will be prohibited from entering the United States.
Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) has received an application for final commitment for a long-term loan or financial guarantee to support the work of Honeywell UOC's engineering of the Pengareng Energy Complex at the tip of the Malaysian Peninsula. In February the Board received a request to increase the financed amount to a $743 million direct loan to support the export of approximately $439 million worth of U.S. engineering services, design services, licenses, catalysts, and refining equipment.
The United States and Mexico today announced a course of remediation at the Volkswagen de México, S.A. de C.V. facility in Cuautlancingo, Puebla. The facility is the largest automobile manufacturing plant in Mexico and among Volkswagen Group’s largest plants globally.
the Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) approved a final commitment for more than $11.3 million to support the financing of two self-refrigerated nitrogen …
U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Trade and the USDA is hosting a webinar on Wednesday, August 21, 2024, at 2:00 p.m. ET titled Lacey Act and Phase VII Implementation. The webinar will provide an overview of the Lacey Act, describe the 2008 amendments to the act covering plants and plant products and their requirements, and provide the latest updates on Phase VII of the Import Declaration Implementation Schedule.
A bipartisan group of House lawmakers, including the chairman and ranking member of the House Select Committee on China, unveiled legislation yesterday creating a new structure within the US government to prosecute international trade crimes. This bill would direct DOJ to establish a new structure dedicated to prosecuting nternational trade crimes in order to enhance US capabilities for detecting, investigating and prosecuting trade fraud, duty evasion, transshipment and other trade-related crimes.
The United States is asking Mexico to review whether workers at a Chinese-owned manufacturing facility located in Mexico are being denied worker rights. The request, under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement’s rapid response labor mechanism, seeks information on whether workers at the Impro Industries Mexico, S. de R.L. de C.V. facility in the city of Villa de Reyes in the State of San Luis Potosí, Mexico, are being denied the right to freedom of association and collective bargaining. Impro is a Hong-Kong based maker of cast and machined component parts for use in the aerospace, energy, medical, automotive, and agricultural industries,. Impro’s 'Phase One' Project features a 1,200,000 square feet facility, 45km south of the San Luis Potosi International Airport.
Legislation to ban Chinese-made connected vehicles from US military bases and other federal installations was introduced yesterday by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). The Countering Adversary Reconnaissance (CAR) Act would bar Chinese connected vehicles from much of the U.S., making it impractical and unprofitable to import them in the first place. The Countering Adversary …
The State Department issued a Statement of Concern Tuesday focused on certain minerals supply chains from Rwanda and eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The statement clarifies the specific risks associated with manufacturing products using minerals extracted, transported or exported from eastern DRC, through Rwanda and Uganda, according to State.
The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security and the Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response announced Tuesday that they are conducting a comprehensive assessment of the US Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient industrial base to gain an understanding of the supply chain network. The resulting information will allow the federal government to more accurately plan and develop funding strategies to help ensure the availability and security of the API supply chain and to raise awareness of current limited domestic manufacturing capabilities, among other potential issues, according to BIS.
The Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF), released an updated Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) Strategy to Prevent the Importation of Goods Mined, Produced, or Manufactured with Forced Labor in the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Notably in this year’s strategy, the FLETF has identified new high priority sectors for enforcement – aluminum, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and seafood – for the first time since 2022.
The Department of Homeland Security, Chair of the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF) released a summary of enforcement efforts since enactment of the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act. Highlighted in the fact sheet are the impacts the FLETF has made on Solar, PVC and Cotton supply chains, as well as a summary of the recent designation of New High Priority Sectors for Enforcement
The USTR's office Monday released the second Report on the Operation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) with Respect to Trade in Automotive Goods . The conclusion of the report is that there is no conclusion. The automotive industry continues preparing for full implementation of the USMCA rules of origin (ROOs) when special flexibilities afforded under alternative staging regimes begin to expire in 2025.
Wednesday Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), United Steelworkers leadership and Cleveland Cliffs leadership called on the administration to act to stop the surge in Mexican steel imports, which has been attributed to the Chinese government routing steel through Mexico to avoid U.S. tariffs. "The Mexican government is currently violating a 2019 agreement with the U.S. and threatening steelworkers in Ohio and around the country," according to a statement.
Milwaukee Tool faces allegations of utilizing forced labor in a Chinese prison factory to manufacture work gloves, where workers endured harsh conditions, including beatings and torture. The lawsuit, filed on Thursday in the U.S. District Court in Milwaukee, asserts that the company either knew or should have known that the gloves were produced through forced labor, contravening the U.S. Trafficking Victim Protection Act.
While Fulfilled by Amazon merchants have long taken advantage of the duty-free treatment of small shipments, Amazon's own merchandise sales have customarily involved the payment of tax and duty, creating an opening for the Chinese e-tailers Shein and Temu. Not for long. Wednesday, Amazon announced a new channel for its platform which will sell consumer goods and clothing direclty from China to US customers. Eliminating the US warehousing nexus puts the Seattle-based merchant on equal footing with its Chinese rivals, in terms of landed cost.