The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has issued a press release announcing that the U.S. and Costa Rica have concluded negotiations to finalize Costa Rica's participation in the U.S.-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).

According to government sources, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is planning to conduct a "document accuracy test" of textiles and apparel that are entered as quota-free and visa-free using entry type '01.'

In St. Eve International, Inc. v. U.S., the Court of International Trade (CIT) ruled in favor of the importer, finding that three entries of shelf bra camisoles were properly classified under HTS 6109.10.0037 (2002) as women's or girls' underwear (Cat 352).

The Committee for the Implementation of Textile Agreements (CITA) has issued a notice requesting public comments by February 10, 2004 regarding a "commercial availability" request it received under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), the U.S.-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA), and the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPDEA) from Warren Corporation:

On December 22, 2003, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley and Ranking Member Max Baucus sent a letter expressing concerns about the ability of the Office of Foreign Assets Control to cut off terrorist financing.

The International Trade Administration (ITA) has issued a notice of inquiry announcing that it is considering proposing regulations that would establish procedures that the agency would follow when it has reason to believe that a person has certified and submitted false statements, or engaged in a scheme to certify and submit false statements, in the course of an antidumping (AD) or countervailing (CV) duty proceeding.

According to the State Department, effective January 15, 2004, its Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC), through the use of the D-Trade electronic licensing system, is prepared to receive and adjudicate fully electronic defense export authorization requests properly submitted by any U.S. person who is a defense trade registrant and wishes to permanently export unclassified defense articles via the Form DSP-5 or furnish defense services via Technical Assistance Agreements (TAAs).

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a press release stating that Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 was a record-breaking year for the volume of trade entering through U.S. seaports and borders. According to CBP, it collected nearly $1 billion more in revenue for the federal government in FY 2003 than in FY 2002.