The Generalized System of Preferences Program (GSP) expired on December 31, 2020, as Congress failed to reach a deal before the end of the year that would have extended the GSP program. There were bills in both the Senate and House which were put forward to extend GSP for sixteen months and six months respectively.
News / Regulatory Updates
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released on their website the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region WRO Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). This is to help answer the many questions asked since the issuance of the Withhold Release Order (WRO) for cotton, cotton products, tomatoes and tomato products produced in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR).
The sustained surge of U.S. containerized imports from Asia, which began eight months ago, continues unabated and is anticipated to persist well into the spring, being further exacerbated by the pre-Lunar New Year cargo rush experienced at origin ports in Asia in recent weeks.
Noatum Logistics has received notifications from two of our core ocean carriers, one within THE Alliance and the other a partner in the Ocean Alliance, announcing 28 voided sailings between February 5 and February 26. A full table of all blank sailings announced as of this week is provided at the bottom of the alert.
On Friday, January 22, 2021, The United States Trade Representative (USTR) office issued in Federal Register Notice 86 No 13 FR 6732 the notice of determination related to the Section 301 investigation into Vietnam’s Currency Valuation practices.
On Friday, January 22, 2021, U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued Cargo System Messaging Service (CSMS) # 45799085 delaying the Aluminum Import License requirement until March 29, 2021. This delay announcement is in response to the “Regulatory Freeze” issued by the White House Chief of Staff on January 20, 2021.
U.S. containerized imports from Asia in December were up 29.9% year over year with December marking the third highest monthly volume figure in 2020 behind October and August.
On January 13, 2020, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced in a press release that a region-wide Withhold Release Order (WRO) for cotton and tomato products made by slave labor in Xinjiang would go into effect immediately.
The ongoing import surge continues to cause bottlenecks throughout the supply chain. For the week ending January 8, there were 35 vessels at anchor awaiting berths at Los Angeles/Long Beach.