The US Trade Representative (USTR) has announced another 6-month extension of Section 301 tariff exclusions on products used to treat COVID-19. All 81 product exclusions will now be extended until November 30, 2022.  The initial extension for all specified products was scheduled to expire on May 31, 2022. Click here to view the official notice. […]

Today, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) issued a notice asking representatives of domestic industries to provide details regarding their utility of Section 301 tariffs since they first went into effect four years ago. In the announcement, the USTR informed companies that have benefited from Section 301 tariffs of the possible termination of […]

On Friday, April 8, 2022, President Biden officially signed the following bills into law to end permanent normal trade relations status for Russia and Belarus and to enact the previously announced ban on Russian oil: H.R. 6968 – the “Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act” bans any importation of energy products from the Federation of […]

Today, the Court of International Trade (CIT) released a ruling indicating that the US Trade Representative (USTR) had the authority to impose the List 3 and 4A Section 301 tariffs covering over $200 billion in Chinese goods. Although the decision was not in favor of the plaintiffs—a group comprised of over 3600 separate lawsuits—who argued […]

Update as of 4/4/22: The lockdown in Shanghai has been extended indefinitely as results of the city-wide COVID testing are still being reviewed, leaving Chinese supply chains in a state of uncertainty. The lockdown in Shanghai Pudong was initially set for March 28th – April 1st, with Shanghai Puxi following from April 1st – 5th. […]

On March 23rd, the U.S. Trade Representative announced the extension of 352 exclusions from Section 301 tariffs on China. The exclusions, which had previously expired, will remain in effect through December 31, 2022. The exclusions from Section 301 tariffs include: List 1: 89 Exclusions List 2: 34 Exclusions List 3: 187 Exclusions List 4: 42 […]

With consideration to the recent horrific developments between Russia and Ukraine, the advice from the government, and the newly imposed sanctions, Shapiro has elected to suspend handling brokerage and forwarding services for all goods originating or shipping to/from Russia, Belarus, and the Donetsk/Luhansk/Crimea regions of Ukraine. For imports, this change will be effective for shipments […]

China is currently facing its largest COVID outbreak since the pandemic initially broke out in 2020. Despite its success combating the virus with a “zero-tolerance” policy thus far, the Chinese government has been unable to contain the highly contagious Omicron variant sweeping across the country in recent weeks. In response to the rapid spike in […]

Earlier today, President Biden announced that the US, along with Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the European Union, will revoke Russia’s Most-Favored-Nation (MFN) status in light of the country’s continued invasion of Ukraine. Additionally, the White House announced it would be taking the following measures: Banning export of luxury goods to Russia […]

Another outbreak of COVID-19 threatens port operations in the city of Ningbo after several positive cases were reported at a clothing factory over the weekend. As a result of the spike in cases, a partial lockdown has been put in place for certain parts of the district of Beilun—which is home to some of Ningbo’s […]

* IMPORTANT: This alert was updated on 12/27/21 to include the effective date. * On December 23, 2021, the White House released a proclamation to modify the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the US (HTS) in order to implement the 5-year update to the World Custom Organization’s (WCO) global Harmonized System (HS). The recommended modifications are […]

CBP’s five-year Harmonized Tariff Schedule update to the World Customs Organization and its Harmonized System will not take effect on January 1, 2022. According to CBP’s CSMS message, ““CBP is awaiting formal direction for this update, which will be implemented by Presiden­tial Proclamation and published in the Federal Register. In the interim, CBP will continue […]

The ports of Los Angeles (LA) and Long Beach (LB) announced that the “Container Dwell Fee” would once again be postponed until January 17, 2022. The fee was originally announced in late October and set to take effect earlier in November, but has been repeatedly delayed after the ports observed a noticeable clearing of backlogged […]

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it will extend 81 of 99  Section 301 tariff exclusions on products used to treat COVID-19 for an additional 6 months; these exclusions were originally set to expire on November 14, 2021. The extended exclusions will apply to products meeting the specified criteria until May […]

As previously mentioned in our most recent Shap Talk, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have announced a “Container Access Dwell Fee,” also called an “Emergency Storage Fee” to be imposed on November 1st. Carriers will be expected to pay a fee of $100 on the 9th day of dwell time for each […]

As you may already be aware, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) revealed that it is considering the possible reinstatement of previously extended Section 301 product exclusions. Now, the USTR has announced that it is seeking comments from the trade community to help determine which of the 549 exclusions—which previously expired in late […]

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it will reestablish a process for importers to apply for Section 301 tariff exclusions.  The USTR also confirmed that it has no plans to make any immediate changes to Section 301 tariff targets. No specific details have been announced regarding the exclusion process revival at […]

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it will extend for an additional 45 days certain Section 301 tariff exclusions on products used to treat COVID-19. This will give the USTR additional time to review previously submitted comments; these exclusions were originally set to expire on September 30, 2021. The extended exclusions […]

On Monday, August 16, 2021, the Court of International Trade (CIT) announced plans to extend the preliminary injunction preventing the liquidation of unliquidated entries subject to Section 301 List 3 or 4A tariffs from September 2nd until October 4th. In the same announcement, CIT judges also extended the August 20th deadline for US Customs and […]

The Ningbo Meidong Container Terminal, also called Meishan Terminal, has suspended all inbound and outbound services after an employee received a positive COVID-19 test on Tuesday, August 10th. The terminal is one of five in the port of Ningbo. The closure restricts shippers from picking up empty equipment or gating-in containers. While some industry leaders […]