NRF Expects Year’s ‘Final Surge’ of Imports This Month as List 4B Tariffs Loom

Imports at major U.S. retail container ports this month are expected to have their “final surge” of 2019 before the 15 percent List 4B Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods take effect Dec. 15, said the National Retail Federation Friday. “Retailers are encouraged by reports that China and the United States have agreed to remove at least some of the existing tariffs once a ‘phase one’ deal is signed,” said NRF. “We are eager to see concrete evidence that the trade war is coming to an end with a final deal that removes all tariffs.” There is “no word” from the Trump administration on the fate of the List 4B tariffs still set for December, it said. “Industry planning is in a state of confusion with the on-again, off-again tariff increases and the widening of trade disputes.”