Insights

FDA: Food Traceability Final Rule

December 30, 2022.
Trade Publications

In January 2011, Congress enacted the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), in response to dramatic changes in the global food system and its role both as a significant public health problem and to protect economic well-being of the food system. The FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration) has issued the...

Energy Controversy: US & Canada Request Resolution from Mexico

December 30, 2022.
Trade Publications

In July 2022, following Mexican President’s regulatory changes regarding “energy sovereignty”, the United States and Canada requested consultations with Mexico. The consultation triggers the first step in state-to-state Dispute Settlement provision set up in Chapter 31 of the USMCA (United States Mexico Canada Agreement). Recent timeline November 2022, Canadian...

Customs Broker License – A Necessity for Customs Business

December 29, 2022.
Trade Publications

On September 22, 2022, CBP issued a Customs Ruling that may change how businesses deal with HTS classification. In this ruling (HQ H290535), a manufacturer, without a customs broker license, requested the ability to provide a full 10-digit classification to their customers, while adding a disclaimer to the classification about liability of...

Section 301 Exclusions Extended

December 29, 2022.
Trade Publications

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has issued an extension on 352 product exclusions that were set to expire at the end of the year. The USTR has determined to extend the reinstated exclusions through September 30, 2023. Exclusions apply based on the product description in each exclusion. The scope...

NEW Broker Reporting & National Broker Permit Enhancements

December 27, 2022.
Trade Publications

As of December 19, 2022, U.S Customs and Border Protection eliminated the Customs Broker District Permit Fee and provided enhancements to the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Portal. Prior to this change, brokers were required to obtain a District Permit in order to transact customs business for ports belonging to that district....

Shipping Container Shortage Shifts into a Surplus

December 19, 2022.
Logistics Publications, Trade Publications

Initially triggered by the global outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2019, the shipping container situation changed, and we saw an ongoing container shortage worldwide. The global lockdown brought significant restrictions on movement: factories were shut down and a higher consumer demand for goods evolved. A severe lack of seaport staff...

COP27 AND THE 2022 EDITION OF THE WTO’S WORLD TRADE REPORT: HOW CAN THE NEW AGREEMENT AFFECT TRADE?

December 13, 2022.
Trade Publications

What is COP27? The 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference or Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC was presented by its hosts as “A defining moment in the fight against climate change”. The Climate Summit aimed to discuss and build a path for climate actions. The Conference was...

Consequences of Importing Merchandise made by Forced Labor

December 12, 2022.

Merchandise that has been made by forced labor of any kind is considered prohibited and may not be imported into the United States. This law is in Section 1307 under Title 19 of the United States Code. Forced labor is defined as “all work or service which is extracted from any...

Amazon’s Biggest Layoff and Biggest Production of Robots!

November 29, 2022.
Logistics Publications

Amazon Plans on letting go of at least 10,000 of its employees. This layoff will be their largest layoff yet. These cuts will primarily affect people in their device's organization. This is partly because most of their devices, Including Alexa, need to sell. There will be a minor set of...

Importing Prototypes

November 18, 2022.

Bringing a new product to market often requires creating a product prototype. Developing a product prototype does not only allow companies to conduct a series of tests on their new or redesigned product, but also attract potential investors or get customer feedback before the mass production begins. To promote product...

Rainy Day Delays

November 11, 2022.
Logistics Publications

Due to Hurricane Nicole impacting Florida on November 10, 2022, FedEx has suspended both Express and Ground services in over 800 Florida zip codes. On Thursday, FedEx released a statement advising that due to the storm, Express services would be suspended in 801 zip codes while Ground services in 263 zip codes would also be...

New Export Controls Target China’s Semiconductor Industry

October 28, 2022.
Logistics Publications, Trade Publications

In an effort to restrict China’s ability to purchase and manufacture advanced computing chips, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued an interim final rule implementing additional controls on advanced computing integrated circuits (ICs), computer commodities that contain such ICs, and certain semiconductor manufacturing items. Through...