Trade Cases

Leibowitz on Trade: Tariffs Due Friday on Chinese Imports
Written by Lewis Leibowitz
May 9, 2019
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington:
As President Trump tweeted this past Sunday, the U.S. Trade Representative has issued a notice that List Three of the tariffs on Chinese imports will be subject to 25 percent tariffs effective 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Friday, May 10. The notice appeared in the Federal Register today. The wording of the notice is a bit unusual.
The language of the Annex to the notice has an unusual qualification on the effectiveness of the 25 percent tariffs included in List Three: “Effective with respect to goods (i) entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on May 10, 2019, and (ii) exported to the United States on or after May 10, 2019,…” the rate of duty will be 25 percent.
The italicized language appears to delay the effective date of the new tariff rate until entry is made after midnight tonight of goods “exported” on or after May 10, 2019. The language does not say “exported from China,” but it clearly says “exported.” If goods coming to the United States were exported before May 10, the new tariff rate does not seem to apply. Perhaps this provides a few extra weeks for negotiation before the trade war is fully escalated. Perhaps not. Still trying to determine the precise effect of the quoted language. Customs and Border Protection is reported to be trying to interpret the language also. This kind of qualifier is decidedly rare, if not unprecedented. Interesting indeed.
The notice also commits the USTR to issue procedures for exclusion from the List Three goods. The notice includes no details—but I’ll be on the lookout for a new notice, which could appear at any time.
Click here to visit the Federal Register website to view the notice in its entirety.
Lewis Leibowitz
The Law Office of Lewis E. Leibowitz
1400 16th Street, N.W.
Suite 350
Washington, D.C. 20036
Phone: (202) 776-1142
Fax: (202) 861-2924
Cell: (202) 250-1551

Lewis Leibowitz
Read more from Lewis LeibowitzLatest in Trade Cases

Leibowitz: When the shutdown should end
There is no doubt that the current government shutdown reflects the vast divisions between the extremes of American politics, society, and even geography. Almost all Americans agree that government is necessary, but voters disagree...

Price: The U.S. Steel shutdown that wasn’t and a call to stop ‘valuation cheating’
How can the U.S. government block U.S. Steel’s Granite City rolling mill closure without harming other American steelmakers? Reducing imports should be the first step. Foreign producers continue to aggressively target the U.S. market, especially now as they find themselves displaced by Chinese exports.

US steel industry applauds ITC final determination in coated trade case
Domestic mills praised the US International Trade Commission’s (ITC's) final determination that imports of corrosion-resistant (CORE) steel from 10 countries pose a threat to them.

ITC’s final ruling: Dumped, subsidized CORE imports are harming domestic market
The US International Trade Commission (ITC) finds that corrosion resistant steel (CORE) imports from 10 countries have caused material damage to domestic product producers, according to the ITC’s statement.

Leibowitz: Trump’s tariffs confront a weakening market
Signs of weakness are already appearing in the tariff wall. The economy has slowed to the point that the Federal Reserve cut interest rates by 0.25%, or 25 basis points, last week. The cut came even as the rate of inflation continues to hover well above the Fed’s 2% target rate.