U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled IEEEPA Tariffs Illegal: On Friday, 29 August, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit released its decision on V.O.S. Selections, et al., v. Trump. The decision argued “Trump’s tariffs of unlimited duration on nearly all goods from nearly every country in the world” go beyond IEEPA’s power to “regulate … importation” of foreign-owned goods during a declared emergency.” The ruling will not immediately take effect and allows the Administration until 14 October to petition the Supreme Court, and once petition filed, the CAFC’s ruling will be suspended until case is decided. As such, IEEPA tariffs will remain in effect until Supreme Court’s ruling likely in Q1 2026. Furthermore, the ruling directs the Court of International Trade to review whether IEEPA tariffs should be blocked only for certain importers or for all importers (e.g., nationwide) given the Supreme Court’s recent decision limiting “universal injunctions.”
US Commerce Department concludes anti-dumping and countervailing (AD/CVD) investigation on steel products: The Department of Commerce announced it concluded its AD/CVD investigations and that select foreign producers of corrosion resistant steel products from 10 countries have been found to be dumping into the United States (Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Netherlands, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, UAE, and Vietnam), and of these, four are also benefiting from government subsidies (Brazil, Canada, Mexico and Vietnam). This affirmation will be followed by the U.S. International Trade Commission’s (USITC) finding as to whether these actions materially injure or threaten to materially injure U.S. industry. If USITC makes an affirmative determination on 9 October, Commerce will issue the AD and CVD orders within 7 days at the rates listed in the announcement and instruct CBP to collect the AD/CVD duties. These rates will stack on other tariffs; we anticipate bonds to cover the amount or cash deposits have been required for these imports given earlier preliminary determinations. Tariff codes in scope are 7210.30.0030, 7210.30.0060, 7210.41.0000, 7210.49.0030, 7210.49.0040, 7210.49.0045, 7210.49.0091, 7210.49.0095, 7210.61.0000, 7210.69.0000, 7210.70.6030, 7210.70.6060, 7210.70.6090, 7210.90.6000, 7210.90.9000, 7212.20.0000, 7212.30.1030, 7212.30.1090, 7212.30.3000, 7212.30.5000, 7212.40.1000, 7212.40.5000, 7212.50.0000, 7212.60.0000, 7225.91.0000, 7225.92.0000, 7226.99.0110, and 7226.99.0130).
US Duty Exemption for De minimis ends: On Friday, 29 August, the de minimis duty exemption was removed. All goods entering the United States, even if below $800, are now subject to IEEPA tariffs. Please see past PMMI Global Trends updates for more information.
Status of US Bilaterial Negotiations and Discussions: Please see the chart below for the latest on how countries are engaging with the United States in effort to reduce reciprocal tariffs.
Trade Policy Actions by Other Countries
Canada updates list of US goods still subject to 25% retaliatory tariff: Over the weekend, Canada removed most US goods from its retaliation list as of 1 September. (PMMI tariff codes for food processing and packaging machinery were not included on the original retaliation list.) Certain steel and aluminum goods from the United States are still targeted with 25% retaliatory tariffs. The announcements and revised retaliation list do not appear to require USMCA-certification to avoid retaliation, but rather, the list is now much smaller and only targeting steel, aluminum and autos.
European Commission submits U.S. trade deal implementation proposal to the European Parliament: On 28 August, the European Commission announced it had delivered its implementation plan for the goods from the United States in the form of two regulatory proposals to the European Parliament. The first proposal seeks to eliminate tariffs on U.S. industrial goods and grant specified “non-sensitive agricultural goods” preferential market access through reduced duties. The second proposal is specific to lobster. The proposals include provisions for the Commission to “adopt an implementing act suspending in whole or in part” concessions if the U.S fails to implement the deal or seeks to undermine provisions of the deal.
