USTR Rejected 3/4 of Tariff Exclusion Requests on Chinese Imports, CRS Reports

Of the nearly 53,000 exclusion requests U.S. importers filed for relief from the Trump administration's Trade Act Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods, 75.4% were denied, and 12.3% are pending, said a Congressional Research Service report Friday. Since most exemptions don't correlate with a single Harmonized Tariff Schedule number, it's not possible to know how much trade the exclusions represent, said CRS. As the administration makes "more active use of Section 301 authorities to pressure other countries to eliminate their trade barriers, Congress could consider amending Section 301," the report said. "It could establish a formal product exclusion process or set specific guidelines for when and how to grant exclusions." The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative didn't comment Monday.