Typhoon Rumbia, the eighteenth typhoon of the year, and fourth to affect East China in less than 30 days is forecasted to make landfall between August 16 and 17, local China time. Approximately 50,000 people have been evacuated from China’s Zhejiang Province ahead of the storm. Typhoon Rumbia, like the previous three typhoons in recent weeks, will impact the ocean ports of Shanghai and Ningbo, airports at Shanghai-Pudong and Shanghai-Hongqiao, as well as others in the region. As with previous storms, airports and ocean terminals will close until the storm passes. This will affect the sailing and flight schedules and lead to possible delays.
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The next FDA Renewal period begins October 1, 2018. All domestic and foreign food and medical device facilities, along with the companies that source from them, are required to renew their registration during the period from October 1, 2018 through December 31, 2018.
On August 1, 2018, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) published a Federal Register Notice announcing that CBP is adjusting certain customs user fees, pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) for Fiscal Year 2019 in accordance with the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act as implemented by CBP regulations.
Source: National Retail Federation
With retail sales rising and retailers rushing to bring merchandise into the country ahead of proposed new tariffs on products from China, imports at the nation’s major retail container ports have set two new records this summer and are expected to set another this month, according to the monthly Global Port Tracker report released today by the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates.
“Tariffs on most consumer products have yet to take effect but retailers appear to be getting prepared before that can happen,” NRF Vice President for Supply Chain and Customs Policy Jonathan Gold said. “We’re seeing new record levels every month this summer. Much of that is to meet consumer demand as tax reform and a thriving economy drive retail sales, but part of it seems to be concern over what’s to come. The good news for consumers is that avoiding tariffs holds off price increases that will inevitably come if the reckless and misguided trade war is allowed to continue.”
On August 7, 2018, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released the second list (List 2 – Final) of approximately $16 billion worth of imports from China that will be subject to a 25 percent additional tariff as part of the U.S. response to China’s unfair trade practices related to the forced transfer of American technology and intellectual property. This second list of additional tariffs under Section 301 follows the first list of tariffs on approximately $34 billion of imports from China, which went into effect on July 6, 2018.
Source: Institute for Supply Management
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in July, and the overall economy grew for the 111th consecutive month, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®.
During the month of July 2018, MIQ Logistics was involved in a number of events throughout the logistics industry. Read regulatory updates, industry updates, services offered by MIQ, and events that will be taking place in the July 2018 logistics link.
Three trade agreements, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and the Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (JEEPA) have all moved forward in negotiations and/or ratification in recent weeks.
Over the last several weeks, the ocean carrier alliances have announced a number of changes to their Asia to U.S.A. ocean services. Changes such as removing entire service strings, implementing void sailing programs, and combining service strings (which effectively removes one or more service loops), are now being implemented. These changes suggest that the carriers are seeking solutions to deal with rising bunker costs, ongoing supply overcapacity in the Asia to U.S.A. trade, concerns over the U.S.A. / China trade tensions, and the ultimate effect on future demand in the market.
On Tuesday, July 10, 2018, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released the proposed list of Chinese products that could be subject to an additional 10 percent tariff, a proposed modification to the earlier actions taken in the U.S. Section 301 investigation of the acts, policies, and practices of the Government of China related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation.