The Trump Administration’s trade policy took another unexpected turn following the President’s Monday morning tweets on December 2, 2019. President Trump announced his intention to re-impose steel and aluminum tariffs on Argentina and Brazil due to “massive devaluation of their currencies.” In March 2018, President Trump imposed 25% duties on all foreign steel imports and
Section 232 Tariffs
Canada and Mexico Eliminate Section 232 Steel/Aluminum Countermeasures as of May 20
Following the U.S. removal of Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum products from Canada and Mexico, both countries have officially lifted their retaliatory tariffs.
- Canadian Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced that effective May 20, 2019, Canada is lifting its retaliatory countermeasures against the U.S.
- The Mexican Ministry of Economy published, and put into
…
Steel and Aluminum 232 Tariffs from CA and MX No Longer in Effect
By Edward Goetz & Frances P. Hadfield on
Per CBP, “Effective for goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on May 20, 2019, the Section 232 duty on imports of steel and aluminum articles with a country of origin of Canada or Mexico will no longer be in effect.”
The Cargo…
U.S. Court of International Trade Holds Section 232 Duties on Aluminum and Steel to be Constitutional
By Frances P. Hadfield & Yun Gao on
On March 25, 2019, the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) in American Institute for International Steel, Inc., Sim-Tex, LP and Kurt Orban Partners, LLC v. United States, held that Section 232 duties imposed on certain steel and aluminum imports by President Trump were constitutional. The three-judge panel denied the American Institute for International…
2018 Midterm Elections Update: Impact on U.S. Trade Policy
By Robert Holleyman, Melissa Morris, Joshua Boswell, Jing Jing Zhang & Evan Yu on
The 116th Congress begins on January 3, 2019. Based on projections from yesterday’s midterms, Democrats will control the House of Representatives by a narrow margin, while Republicans will expand their hold on the Senate. The changes to Congress are likely to shape trade policy through 2019, but much will depend on how House Democrats use…
Latest U.S. Trade Actions/Tariffs and Other Countries Retaliatory Measures – Updated December 3, 2019
Last updated on December 17, 209: Added Phase One Agreement between the U.S. and China
U.S. Trade Actions
| Action | Covered Products | Rate Increase | Effective Date | |
| Section 232 | Steel and Aluminum | Steel – 25% Aluminum – 10% |
6/1/2018 | |
| Status: | Steel – all countries of origin except Canada (exempted), Mexico (exempted), South Korea, Aluminum – all countries of origin except Canada (exempted), Mexico (exempted),
On October 24, South Africa was granted exemptions on 161 aluminum and 36 steel products by the Commerce Department. |
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| Section 232 | Autos and Automotive Parts | TBD | TBD | |
| Status: | For the latest status, please click here. | |||
| Section 301 | For the final list of products in List 1, please click here.
For the final list of products in List 2, please click here. For the final list of products in List 3, please click here. For a list of products in List 4A, please click here. See Annex A. For a list of products in List 4B, please click here. See Annex C. |
25%
30% 25% 30%
25% 30% 15% 15% |
7/6/2018
Indefinitely Delayed 8/23/2018 Indefinitely Delayed
5/10/2019 Indefinitely Delayed 9/1/2019 Indefinitely Delayed |
|
| Status: | List 1 totaling $34 billion worth of imports is composed of 818 tariff lines, and went into effect on 7/6/2018.
List 2 totaling $16 billion worth of imports was originally composed of 284 proposed tariff lines identified by the interagency Section 301 Committee. 279 of the 284 lines went into effect on 8/23/2018. For full details on List 2, please click here. List 3 totaling approximately $200 billion of imports was originally composed of 6,031 tariff lines. 5,745 full and partial lines went into effect on 9/24/2018. For full details on List 3, please click here. On May 10, 2019, List 3 tariffs increased to 25 percent (see here for on-water exception). |
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Retaliatory Actions
| Canada | For covered products, please click here. | Table 1 – 25% Table 2 – 10% Table 3 – 10% |
(as of 5/20/2019) |
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| Status: | The Canadian government received over 1,000 submissions of public feedback during public consultations on its original list.
Canada is imposing countermeasures against C$16.6 billion in imports of steel, aluminum, and other products from the U.S., representing the value of 2017 Canadian exports affected by the U.S. tariffs. |
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| EU | For covered products, please click here. | Annex I – 10% or 25% Annex II – 10% – 50% |
Annex I – 6/22/2018 Annex II – 3/23/2021 or 5th day after WTO Dispute Settlement Body rules against the U.S. action, whichever is first. |
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| Status: | For the latest status, please click here. | ||||
| Mexico | For the translated list of covered products, please click here. | 7% – 25% (pages 1-4)
10% – 15% (page 5) |
(as of 5/20/2019) |
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| Status: | Most retaliatory measures effective as of 6/5/2018. An “exception” list is effective on 7/5/2018. | ||||
| China (Response to Section 232 Tariffs) | For covered products, please click here. | Annex I – 15% – 25% | 4/3/2018 | ||
| Status: | See above. | ||||
| China (Response to Section 301 Tariffs) | For covered products in List 1, please click here.
(Unofficial Version) |
25% (No Change on June 1st – 28 lines of auto and auto part products on this list will be excluded) | 7/6/2018 | ||
| For covered products in List 2, please click here.(Unofficial Version) | 25% (No Change on June 1st – 116 lines of auto and auto part products on this list will be excluded) | 8/23/2018 | |||
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For covered products in List 3, please click here. (Unofficial Version) Additional Tariffs Announced on August 23, 2019 |
Annex 1 – increased from 10% to 25% on June 1st, 2019
Annex 2 – increased from 10% to 20% on June 1st, 2019 Annex 3 – increased from 5% to 10% on June 1st, 2019 Annex 4 – remains 5% (No Change on June 1st – 67 lines of auto and auto part products on this list will be excluded) |
6/1/2019 for Annexes 1, 2, and 3 9/24/2018 (Annex 4) September 1, 2019 December 15, 2019 (Indefinitely Delayed) |
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| Status: | List 1 is composed of 545 tariff lines, and goes into effect on 7/6/2018.
List 2 contains 333 tariff lines on U.S. goods worth $16 billion. Start date is 8/23/2018. List 3 contains 5,207 tariff lines on U.S. worth $60 billion. Start date is 9/24/2018. The September 1 and December 15, 2019 increases represent an additional $75 billion of tariffs on U.S. goods. |
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| India | For covered products, please click here. | Up to $10.6 billion; Annex I – 5% – 100% |
1/31/2019 | ||
| Status: | The U.S. declined India’s request for WTO consultations. | ||||
| Japan | For covered products, please click here. | Up to $1.91 billion | TBD – no earlier than March 23, 2021, or the 5th day following the date of a decision from the WTO DSB, whichever comes first. | ||
| Status: | No update since May 18, 2018. Ambassador Lighthizer is holding trade talks with Economy Minister Motegi in July. Under Secretary McKinney is also leading a trade mission to Japan to discuss a possible bilateral trade deal. | ||||
| Russia | For covered products, please click here. | Additional Tariffs of 25, 30, 35, or 40% | 8/6/2018 | ||
| Status: | On August 6, 2018, Russia began imposing additional tariffs on selected U.S. products. | ||||
| Turkey | For covered products, please click here. | Up to $1.78 billion; Annex I – 5% – 40%Increased certain duties by 4 to 140% |
6/21/2018 8/15/2018 |
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| Status: | |||||
President Raises Section 232 Tariff on Steel Imported from Turkey to 50%
Posted in Section 232 Tariffs, Turkey
On August 10, 2018, President Trump issued a new Proclamation Adjusting Imports of Steel into the United States from Turkey. Steel articles covered by Section 232 from Turkey are now subject to an ad valorem duty rate of 50%.
On August 12, 2018, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) issued Cargo Systems Messaging Service (CSMS)…
USTR Orders Review of Turkey’s GSP Eligibility and President proposes Section 232 tariffs of 50% and 20% on Turkey’s Steel and Aluminum Exports
The USTR announced on August 3rd that it will review Turkey’s eligibility for the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) program that grants duty-free access to the U.S. market. GSP is a U.S. trade program designed to promote economic growth in the developing world by providing preferential duty-free entry for up to 4,800 products from…
Highlights from July 5th CBP Teleconference on Section 301 Requirements and Questions
By John Brew, Aaron Marx, Yun Gao, Spencer Toubia & Edward Goetz on
On July 5, 2018, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) hosted a teleconference to review Section 301 filings requirements, allow members of the trade community to seek clarifications and raise questions, and outline resources CBP has in place.
The first set of Section 301 tariff increases is effective on July 6, 2018.
This is…
U.S. and Other Countries to Raise Additional Tariffs this Week
This week will see the implementation of previously announced tariff increases from the U.S., China, and Mexico.
Thursday, July 5 – Section 232 (Mexico)
Mexico will implement the second round of its retaliation for the U.S.’ increased tariffs on imports of certain steel and aluminum products with additional tariffs of 10-15% on pork and cheese…