CNC Associates is being investigated after allegations of evasion of antidumping and countervailing duties required on imported wooden cabinets and vanities and components from China, CBP said in a May 5 notice. The investigation stems from allegations filed under the Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) by MasterBrand Cabinets, an Indiana cabinetmaker, CBP said. The company alleged that CNC evaded AD/CV duties using transshipment through Malaysia. MasterBrand is represented by Wiley Rein lawyer Timothy Brightbill, who represents several EAPA allegers.
Tim Warren
Timothy Warren, Executive Managing Editor, Communications Daily. He previously led the International Trade Today editorial team from the time it was purchased by Warren Communications News in 2012 through the launch of Export Compliance Daily and Trade Law Daily. Tim is a 2005 graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts and lives in Maryland with his wife and three kids.
Nike shoes that include Bluetooth connectivity, data processing, flash memory and auto-fit technology are classifiable as shoes, CBP said in an April 30 ruling. The company had argued the shoes should be classified based upon the Bluetooth transceiver, similar to smartwatches that rely on Bluetooth to transmit data, under subheading 8517.62. "Wearable 'smart' technology is a growing segment of the marketplace," CBP said. "Without a doubt, these types of goods will require individual, or case-by-case, analyses in order to determine their essential character." Jeffrey Whalen, a lawyer for Nike, requested the tariff classification ruling from CBP.
A company must be able to prove that prices weren't distorted for transactions involving non-market economies (NMEs) when claiming first sale treatment, the Department of Justice said in an April 29 Court of International Trade filing (Imperia Trading, Inc. v. U.S., CIT # 15-00142). DOJ's argument relies on a recent CIT decision involving imported Meyer cookware that said the involvement of Chinese companies made it difficult to determine whether a transaction is affected by non-market influence (see 2104200075). DOJ made the filing as part of a dispute over whether Imperia Trading, an importer of apparel made in China, can use the sale from a Hong Kong middleman company for appraisement.
Five aluminum extrusion importers evaded antidumping and countervailing duties on goods from China by commingling shipments in the Dominican Republic, CBP said in a Jan. 28 determination notice posted by the agency April 27. The finding is a result of an investigation that began following a 2019 allegation from the Aluminum Extrusions Fair Trade Committee (AEFTC) that the companies were evading AD/CV orders A-570-967 and C-570-968. The importers are Florida Aluminum Extrusion, Classic Metals Supplies, Global Aluminum Inc., H&E Home, Industrias Feliciano Aluminum Inc. JL Trading Corp. and Puertas y Ventanas J.M., Inc.
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The origin of electric vehicle motors and the applicability of Section 301 tariffs depends on where the two most important components of the engine are made, said CBP in a recently released ruling. In response to a country of origin ruling request from LG Electronics, CBP considered multiple manufacturing scenarios for the motors.