The United States Representative (USTR) under instructions from the President, and as a result of China’s failure to change its unfair trading practices in regards to intellectual property and innovation has initiated the process of imposing an additional 10 percent duty on certain goods made in China that are classified in 6,031 Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) numbers. The total import value targeted is $200 billion.
The great majority of import products would be affected, as 81 out of 97 HTS Chapters are covered by the new proposed sanctions. Apparel articles classified in Chapters 61 (knitted or crocheted), 62 (not knitted or crocheted – or woven), 63 (other made up textile articles) as well as footwear of Chapter 64 are among the 16 Chapters excluded from these sanctions. However, woven fabrics made with yarns of wool, cotton, man-made fibers, and knitted or crocheted fabrics are affected.
The due date for the submission of written comments is August 17, 2018. The public hearing is scheduled from August 20 to August 23, 2018, and requests to appear at the hearing must be submitted by July 27, 2018.
For complete details about China’s Section 301 background information and the new list of proposed classification numbers please refer to the USTR Federal Register Docket Number 2018-0026 attached.
