Customs and Weekly Trade Snapshot

Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade law news:

Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

• U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Chris Magnus hosted Secretary General Kunio Mikuriya of the World Customs Organization in Washington for a discussion on customs cooperation.  On September 23, 2022, Magnus met with Mikuriya to discuss collaboration to further secure and facilitate global trade and travel in the post-pandemic environment. 

United States Department of Commerce (DOC)

• On September 21, 2022, after a year-long Section 232 investigation, the Department of Commerce (DOC) announced that rare earth neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnet imports threaten national security.   
• DOC received scope ruling applications, requesting that scope inquiries be conducted to determine whether identified products are covered by the scope of antidumping duty (AD) and/or countervailing duty (CVD) orders and that Commerce issue scope rulings pursuant to those inquiries. 
• DOC received scope ruling applications, requesting that scope inquiries be conducted to determine whether identified products are covered by the scope of antidumping duty (AD) and/or countervailing duty (CVD) orders and that Commerce issue scope rulings pursuant to those inquiries. 
• DOC has issued a final rule amending regulations of the Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) to set forth the reporting requirements for the 2022 BE–12, Benchmark Survey of Foreign Direct Investment in the United States. 
• DOC is initiating changed circumstances reviews (CCR) based on a request from Shenzhen Hello Tech Energy Co., Ltd. (Hello Tech), to consider the possible revocation, in part, of the antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) orders on certain crystalline silicon photovoltaic products (solar products) from the People’s Republic of China (China) with respect to certain off-grid small portable crystalline silicon photovoltaic (CSPV) panels as described below. 
• DOC published a notice in the Federal Register of August 24, 2022, in which Commerce announced the final results of the changed circumstances review of the antidumping duty (AD) order on certain large vertical shaft engines between 225cc and 999cc, and parts thereof (vertical shaft engines) from the People’s Republic of China (China).
• DOC published on September 8, 2022, the Federal Register notice of the final results of the administrative review of the antidumping duty order on common alloy aluminum sheet from the People’s Republic of China (China) covering the period February 1, 2020, through January 31, 2021. 
• DOC is initiating changed circumstances reviews (CCR) based on a request from Shenzhen Hello Tech Energy Co., Ltd. (Hello Tech), to consider the possible revocation, in part, of the antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) orders on crystalline silicon photovoltaic cells, whether or not assembled into modules (solar cells), from the People’s Republic of China (China) with respect to certain off-grid small portable crystalline silicon photovoltaic (CSPV) panels as described below. 
• DOC preliminarily finds that Industrias Negromex S.A. de C.V. (Negromex) did not make sales of emulsion styrene-butadiene rubber (ESB rubber) from Mexico at less than normal value during the period of review (POR) September 1, 2020, through August 31, 2021. 
• DOC determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from the Republic of Korea (Korea). The period of investigation is January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. 
• DOC determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from the Russian Federation (Russia). The period of investigation is January 1, 2020, through December 31, 2020. 
• DOC is postponing the deadline for issuing the final determination in the less-than-fair-value (LTFV) investigation of certain steel nails (nails) from the Republic of Turkey (Turkey) until December 19, 2022, and is extending the provisional measures from a four-month period to a period of not more than six months. 
• DOC determines that imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from Argentina are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV) during the period of investigation, October 1, 2020, through September 30, 2021. 
• DOC determines that imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from Mexico are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV) during the period of investigation October 1, 2020, through September 30, 2021. 
• DOC determines that imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from the Russian Federation (Russia) are being, or are likely to be, sold in the United States at less than fair value (LTFV) for the period of investigation (POI) October 1, 2020, through September 30, 2021. 

U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)

• On September 26, 2022 the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Diana Kajmakovic, a state prosecutor in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14033 for being responsible for or complicit in corruption or the undermining of democratic processes or institutions in the Western Balkans. 
• OFAC on September 26, 2022, announced a settlement with CA Indosuez Switzerland S.A. (“CAIS”), an indirect subsidiary of Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank located in Switzerland that specializes in wealth management and corporate and investment banking.   
• OFAC is publishing two general licenses (GLs) issued pursuant to the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations and Global Terrorism Sanctions Regulations: GLs 8 and 8A, each of which previously was made available on OFAC’s website. 
• OFAC is publishing three general licenses (GLs) issued in the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions program: GLs M, M–1, and M–2, each of which was previously made available on OFAC’s website. 
• OFAC is publishing an update to the identifying information of one vessel currently included on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List. 
• OFAC is publishing the names of one or more persons that have been placed on OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List) based on OFAC’s determination that one or more applicable legal criteria were satisfied. 
• OFAC is amending the Central African Republic Sanctions Regulations and reissuing them in their entirety as a more comprehensive set of regulations that includes additional interpretive guidance and definitions, general licenses, and other regulatory provisions that will provide further guidance to the public. 
• OFAC is adopting a final rule amending the Western Balkans Stabilization Regulations and reissuing them in their entirety to further implement a June 26, 2001 Executive order and a May 28, 2003 Executive order related to the Western Balkans, and to implement a June 8, 2021 Western Balkans-related Executive order. 

United States Court of International Trade (CIT)

• On September 13, 2022, the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) issued its final judgment in Bothwell (Taizhou) Steel Fittings, Co., Ltd. v. United States, Consol. Court no. 21– 00166, sustaining the U.S. Department of Commerce’s (Commerce) remand results pertaining to the administrative review of the countervailing duty (CVD) order on forged steel fittings (FSF) from the People’s Republic of China (China) covering the period March 14, 2018, through December 31, 2018.

United States International Trade Commission (USITC)

• Notice is hereby given that the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) has determined not to review the presiding administrative law judge’s (‘‘ALJ’’) initial determination (‘‘ID’’) (Order No. 17) granting a joint motion to terminate the investigation in its entirety based upon settlement. 
• USITC determines, pursuant to the Tariff Act of 1930 (‘‘the Act’’), that revocation of the countervailing and antidumping duty orders on certain amorphous silica fabric from China would be likely to lead to continuation or recurrence of material injury to an industry in the United States within a reasonably foreseeable time. 
• USITC has determined to review in part a final initial determination (‘‘ID’’) of the presiding administrative law judge (‘‘ALJ’’), finding a violation of section 337 as to two of the three asserted patents. 
• USITC hereby gives notice regarding a revised schedule for the subjects of an investigation dealing with Lemon Juice from Brazil and South Africa.  

United States Department of Treasury (USDT)

• On September 23rd, the U.S. Department of the Treasury (USDT) issued Iran General License (GL) D-2 to increase support for internet freedom in Iran by bringing U.S. sanctions guidance in line with the changes in modern technology since the issuance of Iran GL D-1. On September 21st, the Iranian government cut off access to the Internet for most of its 80 million citizens to prevent the world from watching its violent crackdown on peaceful protestors sparked by the brutal death of Mahsa Amini in the custody of Iran’s Morality Police. 

United States Department of State (DOS)

• The United States Department of State (DOS) is seeking Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for information in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, requesting comments on this collection from all interested individuals and organizations. 

United States Small Business Administration (SBA)

United States Codex Office

• U.S. Codex Office is sponsoring a virtual public meeting on October 26, 2022. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.) positions to be discussed at the 45th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), which will take place from November 21–25, 2022, with the report adoption on December 12–13, 2022. 

Wall Street Journal (WSJ)

• The Wall Street Journal (WSJ)  reported on how a newly operative U.S. law is imposing major hurdles on the importation of goods from China’s Xinjiang region, the home of China’s Uyghur people and other minority groups. 

Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC)

• Consumer News and Business Chanel (CNBC) reported on the historic import and export container processing in the month of August that pushed the Port of New York and New Jersey to the No. 1 spot outpacing both the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. 

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