CBP misclassified Mitsubishi Power America's supported selective catalytic reduction (SCR) catalysts, resulting in the entries wrongly being assessed Section 301 duties, the importer argued in a Jan. 4 complaint at the Court of International Trade. Instead, the supported SCR catalysts fit under a different Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading that was granted an exclusion to the Section 301 China tariffs by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the importer said (Mitsubishi Power Americas v. U.S., CIT #21-00573).
Importer 3BTech launched a second, identical classification battle over its electric scooters, known as hoverboards, in a Dec. 10 complaint in which it alleges the hoverboards were assessed duties under the wrong Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading at entry into the U.S. 3BTech argues for a different HTS subheading than the one given to it by CBP, and, failing that, argues for an exclusion from the Section 301 China tariffs granted by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (3BTech, Inc. v. United States, CIT #21-00026).
Importer MTD Products Inc. argued in its Dec. 8 complaint at the Court of International Trade that its lawn mower engines qualify for duty-free treatment and, in the alternative, an exclusion to the Section 301 China tariffs, and that CBP improperly denied its protest claiming as much. The importer brought in spark-ignition reciprocating or rotary internal combustion piston engines from China, each valued at less than $180, that are used in walk-behind, riding and zero-turn riding lawn mowers (MTD Products Inc. v. United States, CIT #21-00036).
Sixty-seven World Trade Organization members concluded negotiations to simplify unnecessarily complicated regulations in services trade, the WTO announced after a Dec. 2 meeting of the Joint Statement Initiative on Services Domestic Regulation (DR JSI). The negotiated text will seek to cut administrative costs in services trade and create a more streamlined environment in which service providers can do business in foreign markets. The development received immediate praise from the major players at the WTO, including the U.S. and the European Union.
CBP will deny liquidation extension requests that are filed "based solely on the pending CIT litigation challenging the lawfulness of the Section 301 duties on Chinese goods under List 3 and/or List 4A," the agency said in CSMS message. CBP will "place protests challenging the lawfulness of the Section 301 duties imposed on Chinese goods under List 3 and/or List 4A in 'Suspended' status under 'Other,' as CBP will not be acting on these protests at this time," it said. "The suspension of protests under the 'Other' category does not in any manner acknowledge the validity of such protests but is merely an administrative convenience for CBP. This guidance regarding liquidation extensions and protest processing does not pertain to entries filed under List 1 (subheading 9903.88.01), List 2 (subheading 9903.88.02), submissions pertaining to exclusion requests pending with the U.S. Trade Representative, or submissions not contesting the validity of List 3 and/or List 4A Section 301 duties on Chinese goods."
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, Japan's trade minister and the European Union's trade commissioner said their staffs will be working to identify problems caused by non-market practices, to identify gaps in existing enforcement tools and to think about what work is needed to develop rules to address trade-distorting non-market practices. Japan, the EU and the U.S. will also discuss cooperating on using existing trade remedies. The three nations were supposed to have met on the sidelines of the World Trade Organization's 12th Ministerial Conference, but had to meet virtually because of its postponement (see 2111300028). Their joint statement also said that WTO reform is important.
After Switzerland banned flights from Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa, the World Trade Organization had to postpone the 12th Ministerial Conference that was due to start Nov. 30. A news release from Nov. 26 quoted Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala saying that the travel restrictions would have put delegations from Southern Africa at a disadvantage. "She pointed out that many delegations have long maintained that meeting virtually does not offer the kind of interaction necessary for holding complex negotiations on politically sensitive issues," the release said.
The top Republicans on the Senate Finance and the House Ways and Means committees asked U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to "start a concrete conversation about which reforms" would address the U.S. concerns about the World Trade Organization's appellate body, so that binding dispute reform can return to Geneva. They also said that the Nov. 30-Dec. 3 12th Ministerial Conference (MC12) could be an opportunity to end the paralysis at the WTO.
The Court of International Trade, noting an impasse on a key jurisdictional question in a customs case in a Nov. 22 letter, gave the litigants 30 days to work out a solution on how best to proceed. Acknowledging the legitimacy of both sides' jurisdictional claims, Judge Jane Restani said that if the parties fail to resolve the matter in 30 days, then the plaintiff, FD Sales Company, has 10 days to amend its complaint (FD Sales Company LLC v. United States, CIT #21-00224).
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