Archive for October, 2008

The U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) will monitor certain textile and apparel imports from China at the request of the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Ways and Means, the agency announced today.

The ITC will provide statistical reports every two weeks on the volume, value, unit value, and import market share of textile and apparel items that are covered by the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Concerning Trade in Textile and Apparel Products, an agreement between the United States and China which was entered into in late 2005 and will expire on December 31, 2008.

Washington - U.S Customs and Border Protection, in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, is expanding the CBP Importer Self-Assessment Program to include a product safety component, the Importer Self-Assessment Product Safety, as part of a pilot program.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has published an FAQ on their website to help address the growing frustration among importers regarding what is covered and what is required under the new legislation. The below link will take you to the CPSC website and the FAQ, as well as provide the type of information that is required on the Certificate of Conformity and how to complete such a certificate.

The Department of Commerce (Department) seeks public comment on any subsidies, including stumpage subsidies, provided by certain countries exporting softwood lumber or softwood lumber products to the United States during the period January 1 through June 30, 2008.

As central region vice president, Chiarito will be responsible for the management of all operational, sales, profit/loss, budget and project roles for multiple stations, employees, freight forwarding and customs brokerage operations. He will also implement and manage strategic initiatives to increase growth, sales, profit and geographic footprint in the central region.

OTTAWA — Since the first free trade agreement between the United States and Canada, 20 years ago this month, Canada’s economy has become increasingly integrated with that of the United States. On Friday, with the American economy in disarray and its global leadership in question, Canada will take what appears to be a step back from that relationship.

SUMMARY: This document announces guidelines for the assessment of claims for liquidated damages and the mitigation of those claims when participants in the National Customs Automation Program (NCAP) test for the Periodic Monthly Statement Payment Process fail to pay estimated
duties in the time period prescribed by law. In addition, CBP may exercise the authority to suspend any bond principal (the importer of record) from participation in the Periodic Monthly Payment Statement test and require that the bond principal pay estimated duties and fees
on an entry-by-entry basis. Further, CBP may exercise the authority to require the bond principal to file entry summary documentation with estimated duties and fees attached before merchandise is released from any CBP port.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Trade Representative Susan C. Schwab announced today that the World Trade Organization (WTO) Appellate Body has concluded that the United States did not violate its WTO obligations by maintaining additional duties on certain EU products after the EU claimed it had come into compliance by amending its ban on beef from animals treated with growth-promoting hormones.

Washington, D.C. – The governments of the United States and Uruguay today signed two protocols to their bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA). The protocols were signed by Uruguayan Minister of Foreign Affairs Gonzalo Fernández and Assistant U.S. Trade Representative Everett Eissenstat.

The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) issued its 2010-2015 Strategic Plan on September 25. This plan differs from the Commission’s 2003–2008 Strategic Plan in several ways. First, it replaces the five former strategic goals contained in the earlier plan with three goals in an attempt to better capture the agency’s focus. Second, it sets goals and objectives which directly link to the 2010 Annual Plan and will continue to do so for subsequent annual plans through 2015. Third, it contains targets and measures linked to objectives via strategies. Fourth, the plan drives the agency’s budgetary process via an organizational linkage table.