Forced Labor
A new manufacturer and product specific forced labor WRO (Withhold Release Order) was put in place at the end of June. This WRO bans the importation of silicon produced by Hoshine Silicon Industry Co, which is located in the Xinjiang province of China. This is the same region which cotton, and tomato products are also banned from importation. The silicon produced by Hoshine is most commonly used in the production of solar panels and at least 15 solar panel producing companies have links to Hoshine.
CBP is still studying the data, but, so far, it has determined that goods valued at approximately $6 million dollars were imported into the US as direct purchases from Hoshine, and more than $150 million worth of products were imported with Hoshine inputs. CBP expects connections to more downstream products will be identified as the analysis continues. The WRO states that all products produced wholly or in part will be detained, so US Importers must practice supply chain diligence to ensure their products do not contain any component which can be traced back to Hoshine Silicon Industry Co.
Over 600 shipments have already been detained under various WROs since October of 2020.
Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) Renewal
The Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB) is still circulating through Congress, waiting for approval and renewal. Its approval would reinstate preferential duty status on a variety of imported products. Most recently, The House of Representatives objected to and removed around 50 products from the Senate’s version of MTB – most classified in the apparel and footwear categories.
Section 301 (China tariffs) Litigation
On July 6, 2021, The Court of International Trade (CIT) issued a 50-page opinion on the open litigation for Section 301 Lists 3 and 4A (which was opened in late 2020). This grants a preliminary injunction to temporarily halt liquidation on unliquidated import entries impacted by Section 301 List 3 and 4A for plaintiffs involved in the case.
Importers who joined the case for relief from Section 301 tariffs are recommended to contact their respective legal counsel right away, as importers must request suspension of liquidation per entry for all the entries in question and submit specific entry information to the CIT within that request.
Filing this request will allow these entries to remain unliquidated for the duration of the litigation and allow US Customs to provide refunds to importers if the litigation is successful.
All information must be submitted to the CIT by August 2, 2021, so understanding each particular law firm or trade attorney’s deadline to receive the required information prior to that is crucial for importers.
We have a team of experts on staff who would be happy to help you navigate the complexities of these issues. Please contact Ashley Coxey, National Director of Business Development, Customs Brokerage or your Laufer representative for more information on any topic discussed in this week’s market letter.