As expected, the President’s Trade Administration released today the list of 818 products from China that will be subject to an additional 25% duty effective July 6, 2018. The good news is that this number has been reduced from the initial list of 1,333 items previously announced. We will refer to this as the “first list goods”.
In addition, the Administration released an additional list of 284 items, referred to as the “second list goods”, which will be subject to a public notice and comment period, which will be announced before the final list is released and an effective date of these will be imposed.
The first list comprises 818 products with a total import value of $34 billion, down from the 1,300 goods valued at $50 billion that had originally been proposed. A large percentage of the goods on this list are from HTSUS Chapters 84, 85, 87, 88, and 90, such as engines and motors; construction, drilling, and agricultural machinery; machines for working minerals, glass, rubber, or plastic; rail locomotives and rolling stock; motor vehicles and motorcycles; helicopters and airplanes; and testing, measuring, and diagnostic instruments and devices. For the complete list of products subject to the additional 25% duty, please visit https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/enforcement/301Investigations/List%201.pdf
The second list comprises 284 tariff lines with a total import value of about $16 billion. Many of these products are also classified in Chapters 84, 85, 97, and 90, but various products in chapters 27, 34, 38, 39, 70, 73, 76, and 89 are also included. Affected goods include plastics and plastic products; industrial machinery; machinery for working stone, ceramics, concrete, wood, hard rubber or plastic, and glass; cargo containers; tractors; and optical fibers. To view the complete second list, please visit: https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/enforcement/301Investigations/List%202.pdf
All importers should review both lists to determine how they will be affected by the first list goods and how you could possibly be affected by the second list items as currently presented.
