Costco is experiencing “a lot of moving parts” with the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods, including a few price increases “along the way,” said Chief Financial Officer Richard Galanti on a fiscal Q4 call on Oct. 3. Costco has tariff exposure to many of the products on “the first three lists,” and “we'll just have to wait and see” the impact if those tariffs rise to 30 percent as scheduled Oct. 15, he said.
CBP has assessed about $41 billion in duties under the major trade remedies started during the Trump administration as of Oct. 2, according to CBP's trade statistics page. That includes $31 billion in duties from the Section 301 tariffs on goods from China, up around $4 billion from about a month ago. The assessed tariffs under Section 301 now include the 15 percent tariffs that took effect on Sept. 1 (see 1908270066). CBP also has assessed about $8.1 billion under the Section 232 tariffs on steel and $1.7 billion under tariffs on aluminum. The Section 201 trade remedies on washing machines, washing machine parts and solar cells (see 1801230052), imposed Jan. 23, 2018, account for $1.1 billion in assessed tariffs.
In the Sept. 25 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 53, No. 34), CBP published notices that propose to revoke or modify rulings and similar treatment for headboards, footboards and side rails imported in separate shipments, and steel tubing.
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.”