Due to recent flooding in British Columbia, Canada, all rail service to and from the Port of Vancouver, including Deltaport and Centerm terminals, has been suspended at this moment. Both CN and CP rails are working to assess the damages and timing needed for repair and resume operations.
News / Regulatory Updates
On Tuesday, November 16, 2021, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) office in Federal Register Notice 86 No 218 FR 63438 stated that the Section 301 Exclusions for 99 Covid-19 related medical supplies originally scheduled to expire on November 14, 2021, would be extended through November 30, 2021, and that 81 items would be extended for an additional six months to May 31, 2022.
The West Coast MTO Agreement (WCMTOA) announced on November 10, 2021, the Traffic Mitigation Fee (TMF) at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will be temporarily increased from December 1, 2021, through January 31, 2022, subject to regulatory clearance by the Federal Maritime Commission.
On Sunday, October 31, 2021, the United Sates and the European Union announced in a Joint Statement on Trade in Steel and Aluminum that the U.S. would remove the section 232 tariffs and the E.U. would suspend related tariffs on U.S. products. In addition to the removal of tariffs both will also suspend their related World Trade Organization disputes.
In reaction to the ongoing historic container port congestion, the Biden Administration announced on October 25th that effective November 1, 2021, the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will begin charging an “emergency fee” on all long dwelling cargo.
The USTR has announced that it is inviting public comments on whether to reinstate any of the 549 China Section 301 product exclusions that had previously been extended but are now expired. This represents only a small portion of the original 2,200 total product exclusions previously approved by the USTR which were allowed to expire without extension.
On Friday, October 1, 2021, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) office announced an agreement to resolve the Timber Section 301 Investigation. The agreement secures commitments that will help keep illegally harvested or traded timber out of the supply chain and protect the environment and natural resources.
Effective October 1, 2021, Egypt has implemented a new Advance Cargo Information Declaration (ACID). Shipments departing origin after October 1, 2021, without an ACID number will be rejected and returned to origin.
On Friday August 20, 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) sent out Cargo Systems Messaging Service CSMS #49132200 which provided guidance to importers and brokers regarding Harmonized Tariff System (HTS) subheading 9801.00.10 for U.S. and Foreign Goods Returned.
Effective October 1, 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection will proceed in adjusting certain customs user fees pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) for Fiscal Year 2022 in Accordance with the Fixing American’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) as implemented by CBP regulations.