Economies hang in the balance as China and the United States begin a tit-for-tat dance on the international stage over technology and international property rights. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) published the list of approximately 1,300 proposed products imported from China that may be subject to additional tariffs, escalating protectionist stances between the two trading giants. Earlier this week, China slapped 15-25% retaliatory duties on U.S. goods such as pork, fruit, nuts, wine, ginseng, aluminum, ethanol and pipes in response to the U.S.’s 25% tariffs on steel and 10% on aluminum imports that targeted China, based on a Section 301 investigation that found intellectual property theft and unfair trade practices such as network hacking, partnership requirements, and investment restrictions.
The USTR advised targets were selected based on “extensive interagency economic analysis” in order to reduce China’s advancement of advanced technology while minimizing impact to the U.S. economy.
The list, covering $50 billion in Chinese goods, may impact the following HTSUS chapter headings:
- 29 – chemicals
- 30 – medicines
- 40 – some rubber, tires, and conveyor belts
- 72 – iron, non-alloy steel
- 73 – alloy steel
- 76 – aluminum
- 84 – machinery, mechanical appliances, including machinery used in manufacturing textiles & apparel
- 85 – electrical machinery, television image, sound recorders, reproducers
- 86 – railway, tramway
- 87 – motor vehicles
- 88 – planes, helicopters
- 89 – boats
- 90 – glass, microscopes
- 93 – guns
And the schedule for public and industry comment is tight:
APRIL 23, 2018
Due date for filing requests to appear and a summary of expected testimony at the public hearing and for filing pre-hearing submissions.
MAY 11, 2018
Due date for submission of written comments.
MAY 15, 2018
The Section 301 Committee will convene a public hearing in the main hearing room of the U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW Washington DC 20436 beginning at 10:00 am.
MAY 22, 2018
Due date for submission of post-hearing rebuttal comments.
Submissions can be made through the Federal eRulemaking Portal, or as an alternative to on-line submissions, please contact Sandy McKinzy at (202) 395-9483.
For questions about the ongoing investigation or proposed action, contact Arthur Tsao, Assistant General Counsel, at (202) 395-5725.
For questions on customs classification of products identified in the Annex to this Notice, contact Evan Conceicao at [email protected].
Once public comment period has been completed, duties can be enforced as soon as 30 days or delayed up to 180 days after the final determination.
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