Section 301 Tariff Increases, Summary & Deadlines
On the Sunday eve before Labor Day, as American families gathered to celebrate the social and economic achievements of the U.S. labor movement, increased trade tariffs went into effect targeting imports from China in an ongoing effort by the U.S. government to pressure a trade deal and eliminate unfavorable trade [...]
PierPass Announces 1.9 Percent Increase to TMF
According to The West Coast MTO Agreement (WCMTAO), beginning August 1, 2019, the Traffic Mitigation Fee (TMF) at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will increase from $31.52/TEU and $63.04/FEU to $32.12/TEU and $64.24/FEU. The TMF, implemented through PierPass, helps terminal operators with the cost of providing essential [...]
India Loses GSP Status Starting June 5
Late on Friday, May 31, the United States announced the removal of India from the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program effective Wednesday, June 5, 2019. The United States launched an eligibility review of India’s compliance with the GSP market access criterion back in April 2018. According to the USTR, [...]
U.S. Lifts Section 232 Steels Tariffs for Canada and Mexico
In an effort to advance Congressional approval of a new North American trade deal, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the United States and Canada have agreed to eliminate steel and aluminum tariffs spurred by Section 232 investigations almost a year ago. In a joint statement issued Friday, May 17, 2019, [...]
US Prepares to Meet China at G20 Japan, List 4 Tariffs Published
Just as shippers hoped the trade dispute between China and the United States was coming close to a deal, issues during the negotiations have re-ignited tensions culminating in new tariffs on both sides of the Pacific. MAY 10, 25% DUTIES ON LIST 3 Last week, the Office of the U.S. [...]
China Retaliates against The United States, Raises Tariffs on $60 billion of U.S. Goods, Effective June 1st
China’s finance ministry announced on Monday evening that it would proceed in raising tariffs on roughly $60 billion worth in American goods beginning June 1, 2019. Beijing will increase tariffs on more than 5,000 products to 20 percent or 25 percent from the previous 10 percent imposed last fall. As [...]
Carriers Seek Shipper Help in Fight for Houston Ship Channel
This past April, the local Port Authority implemented a rule limiting the number of calls a 9,500+ TEU vessel can have in the Houston Ship Channel. Piggybacking on the decision, Houston Ship Pilots also decided to prohibit two-way traffic on the narrow passageway further restricting the number of times a [...]
Personnel Shift Causes Freight Crunch at US-Mexico Border
Truckers importing from Mexico into the United States are experiencing severe delays and increased wait-times after the U.S. drastically reduced the number of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel handling Mexican border crossings, reassigning them to assist with the processing of illegal immigrants. Citing a “large scale surge of migrants [...]
May Accepts October 31 BREXIT Extension
The European Union (EU) has agreed to delay the United Kingdom’s departure from the EU until October 31, 2019. The decision avoids a political crisis days after Britain’s Prime Minister, Theresa May, failed to come to an agreement with Parliament on a BREXIT strategy. May has voiced her desire for [...]