Current TONS News
Click to View Past Newsletters|
December 11, 2012
On December 10, 2012, the Journal of Commerce (JOC) issued an article announcing that a strike in the ports of the East and Gulf coasts has been authorized by the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA), if a contract agreement with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) is not reached by December 29. The JOC mentioned that both sides met today in Delray Beach, Fl, to discuss the contract. Ton’s will continue to monitor the situation, and will provide more updates once available. The JOC article can be found online at:
On a Federal Register notice published on December 6, 2012, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a final ruling which increases the limit for informal entries from $2000 to $2500, and reduces the Merchandise Processing Fee (MPF) to $2.00. The notice explains that "CBP is increasing the informal entry limit to mitigate the effects of inflation and in addition, to meet a commitment of the Beyond the Border Initiative between the United States and Canada, to increase and harmonize the value thresholds to $2,500 for expedited customs clearance from the current levels of $2,000 for the United States and $1,600 for Canada." CBP also notes other changes, including the removal of language requiring formal entries for certain tariffs which were previously subject to absolute quotas, but such requirement is no longer in effect. The final rule takes force on January 7, 2013. The full text of the Federal Register notice can be found online at:
U.S. Senate Passes Bill For PNTR With Russia And Moldova On December 6, 2012, the U.S. Senate passed Bill H.R. 6156 which repeals the Jackson-Vanik Amendment application to Russia and Moldova, and authorizes President Obama to extend Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) to both of these countries. This comes as a response to Russia's admission to the World Trade Organization (WTO) on August 22, 2012. In a press release issued by the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), it is explained that once Russia is granted PNTR status with the U.S., trade between the two countries will be covered under the WTO rules, which would result in greater market access and a rule-based trade environment. The bill was passed by the U.S. Senate with 92 votes in favor, and 4 votes against. The summary of H.R. 6156 can be found online at: The USTR press release is available at:
________________________________________ Tons News is compiled from a number of public sources that, to the best of Tons knowledge, are true and correct. It is our intent to present only accurate information. However, in the event any information contained herein is erroneous, Tons accepts no liability or responsibility.
|