CBP issued the following release on commercial trade and related matters:
Exemptions from Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum for Canada, Mexico and the European Union will end on June 1, President Donald Trump announced in two presidential proclamations issued on May 31. No permanent agreement was reached for the countries, and the administration did not extend their temporary exemptions.
President Donald Trump approved the end of temporary exemptions to Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum from Mexico, Canada and the European Union, the White House said in a news release. "As of June 1, 2018, tariffs will no longer be suspended for steel or aluminum imports from those countries," the White House said. "The Administration will continue discussions with them and remains open to discussions with other countries." The U.S. "was unable to reach satisfactory arrangements, however, with Canada, Mexico, or the European Union, after repeatedly delaying tariffs to allow more time for discussions," the White House said in another release.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce remains concerned for the ramifications of ending country exemptions to the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, the trade group said in a news release. "The U.S. must not expand tariffs or quotas on steel and aluminum imports to additional countries on June 1, as has been threatened," it said. Already, steel costs have increased, as has the volatility in aluminum prices, the Chamber said. "Extending the reach of these tariffs and quotas to additional countries is certain to provoke widespread retaliation from abroad and would put at risk the economic momentum achieved through the administration’s tax and regulatory reforms. We urge the administration to take this risk seriously.” The country exemptions for Canada, Mexico and the European Union are set to end on June 1 (see 1805040046).
The Commerce Department seeks comments by June 22 in connection with its recently launched Section 232 investigation into the national security effects of “imports of automobiles, including cars, SUVs, vans and light trucks, and automotive parts,” it said in a notice. The agency began the investigation into potential tariffs on May 24, amid reports that President Donald Trump wants a 25 percent tariff on cars and auto parts to counter the purported erosion of the U.S. auto industry by imports (see 1805240002). Rebuttal comments in connection with the investigation are due July 6. Commerce will hold a public hearing on the investigation July 19-20 in Washington, with requests to participate also due June 22.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for May 21-25 in case they were missed.
The White House will resume plans to impose 25 percent tariffs on some $50 billion worth of goods from China, it announced on May 29. The announcement came slightly over a week after the Trump administration said it would put the Section 301 tariffs on hold while the U.S. and China formalize a deal between the countries (see 1805210029). A final list will be announced by June 15 and "tariffs will be imposed on those imports shortly thereafter," the White House said.
The Commerce Department has launched an investigation into the need for tariffs on cars and auto parts in a move widely seen as an attempt to pressure Mexico to accept a NAFTA rewrite. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on May 24 that "there is evidence suggesting that, for decades, imports from abroad have eroded our domestic auto industry,” and the department will explore whether by damaging the U.S. economy and reducing research in auto-related technology, the decline of domestic auto and auto part manufacturing therefore is a national security issue. Currently, SUVs and trucks face a 25 percent tariff, while cars and auto parts face a 2.5 percent tariff outside the NAFTA region, or if a Canadian or Mexican vehicle fails to meet a 62.5 percent rules of origin quota.
With Europe's steel and aluminum tariffs exemption expiring in eight days, European Union Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom told reporters in Brussels that the U.S. may not accept the bloc's trade concessions. According to a report in The Guardian, the EU has offered to up LNG imports from the U.S., change the terms of trade on cars and discuss World Trade Organization reforms, but all of these are conditioned on the U.S. dropping the threat of tariffs. According to The Guardian, Malmstrom said on May 22: “Is this going to be enough? I am not sure, frankly."
India, which earlier submitted at the World Trade Organization a list of retaliatory tariffs for the U.S.'s Section 232 action, now has filed a case challenging the action's legality. On May 23, it circulated a request for consultations with the U.S., the first step before a panel can be convened to consider the dispute. India points not only to the fact that countries are being treated differently, but also says that the Commerce Department is using voluntary export restraints and quotas to protect domestic producers. Both are against the WTO's General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ( GATT) rules, India alleges.