Comments Open Tuesday on Reinstating China Tariff Exclusions

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is seeking comments on whether to reinstate certain previously extended exclusions to the Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods that mostly expired Dec. 31, says Friday’s Federal Register. USTR will evaluate the possible reinstatement of each exclusion on a “case-by-case basis,” focusing on whether a particular product remains available only from China, despite the imposition of the tariffs that began with the List 1 duties in September 2018, said the agency. USTR also wants to know what supply chain changes have happened in the past three years and what efforts importers have made to source products from countries other than China, including from the U.S. Any exclusions that are reinstated will be retroactive to Tuesday, when USTR’s public docket for comments opens. The docket closes Dec. 1. USTR Katherine Tai said this week that reinstating a "targeted" exclusion process would be a near-term component of the Biden administration's trade policy toward China (see 2110040025).