The auto industry publicly asked the Trump administration not to rush into certifying readiness for the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement's entry into force, given the fact that “a global pandemic is significantly disrupting our supply chains, and the industry is throwing all available resources into managing production through this crisis for our employees and for the broader U.S. economy.”
Country of origin cases
Canada's House of Commons approved the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement -- called CUSMA in Canada -- by unanimous consent March 13, before adjourning until April 20 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Canadian Senate passed it less than an hour later. Royal Assent, the equivalent of a presidential signature in the U.S., followed shortly, and the Senate adjourned as well. Now, all three countries must continue to work on uniform regulations so that they can certify the treaty is ready to enter into force. Efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus disease COVID-19 may slow that process, because the countries also have to evaluate the progress toward fulfilling commitments, such as setting up labor courts in Mexico and getting new rules of origin processes in place. Once that certification is issued, NAFTA will be replaced on the first day of the third month after the announcement.
The Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security added 24 entities to its Entity List and revised five existing entries, the agency said in a notice. The new entries include companies in China, Iran, Pakistan, Russia and the United Arab Emirates; and the revised entries are for entities in France, Iran, Lebanon, Singapore and the United Kingdom. The changes take effect March 16. All shipments now requiring a license as a result of this rule that were on dock for loading or aboard a carrier to a port as of that date may proceed to their destinations under the previous eligibility, BIS said.
A top Commerce Department official tempered fears that the U.S. wants to stifle industry competitiveness (see 2003100044 and 2002180060) as it considers further restricting exports to Huawei and China, saying that is not the administration's goal. “Why would you restrict a U.S. company if you're only going to be enabling their competitor?” said Rich Ashooh, Commerce’s assistant secretary for export administration. “That’s a very important principle to engage in.”
Ecuador recently renewed its tariff exemptions for imports of soybean meal and wheat from all origins, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service report released March 2. The exemptions took effect Jan. 1 and will last for five years, the agency said. The extension marks the first time Ecuador has announced a five-year renewal, the agency said, adding that previous extensions have covered only two- to three-year periods.
The last American to serve on the World Trade Organization's Appellate Body, Tom Graham, told the Georgetown Law International Trade Update conference that the body “is not coming back any time soon.” Graham, who largely agrees with the U.S. critique of Appellate Body overreach, added, “The new I have come to ... is that it's better this way.” Graham was the most prominent, but far from the only speaker at the March 5-6 conference to say that neither the Europeans nor the Americans are ready to have a meeting of the minds on how to reform the appellate function of the rules-based trading order.
If President Donald Trump is not re-elected, the next administration will remain focused on China, export controls and Entity List actions but will likely approach China with a more clear, predictable strategy, two former top Commerce Department officials said. “You would see a more well-defined, carefully thought-through approach to issues like Huawei,” Peter Lichtenbaum, who served as Commerce’s assistant secretary for export administration during the Bush administration, said during a March 6 International Trade Update panel at the Georgetown University law school. “Not because it's a Democratic [administration], but because it's a more regular-order administration and less policy made by tweet.”
The World Customs Organization issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Commerce Department will hold the first meeting of its Emerging Technology Technical Advisory Committee May 19, the agency said in a notice in the Federal Register. The committee will focus on identifying emerging technologies with dual uses for potential control by the Bureau of Industry and Security, which is working on restricting exports of both emerging and foundational technologies (see 2002040057). The first meeting is expected to feature remarks from BIS management. The meeting was originally scheduled for December and January before being delayed both times due to issues getting members their security clearances (see 2002240033).
The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of Mar. 4 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):