USTR Rewrites Four China 301 Exclusions as CBP Deploys Canada Section 338 Records

USTR conforms four China 301 exclusions to July 1 statistical changes

91 FR 56538 · Published September 2; effective for entries on or after July 1, 2026

USTR amended four product-exclusion descriptions after USITC changed ten-digit statistical reporting categories on July 1. The notice says the purpose is to maintain the pre-existing product coverage of the exclusions—not to create a new exclusion, extend an expiration date or change a Section 301 duty rate. CBP will issue separate entry and implementation instructions. USTR notice and Annex.

CBP’s HSU 2621 adds Canada Section 338 records and revises eight FSIS flags

CSMS #69726413 · Sent September 1 at 3:34 p.m. EDT; HSU created August 22

CBP says HSU 2621 contains 13 harmonized tariff records and 54 ABI records. It includes the Section 338 updates referenced in CBP’s August 21 Canada guidance and the following Food Safety and Inspection Service PGA flag changes. CBP HSU 2621 notice.

The related Canada message directs filers to Section 338 headings 9903.03.12 through 9903.03.16. HSU 2621 is an operational data deployment; it does not announce a new Canada duty rate or a second effective date. The underlying measure and its exclusions remain governed by the proclamations, HTS text and CBP instructions. Related Canada Section 338 guidance.

AES reference-data note: Nauru’s official name changes to Naoero

In a separate September 1 message, CBP said AESTIR Appendix C will reflect Nauru’s constitutional name change from the Republic of Nauru to the Republic of Naoero. The bulletin does not announce a new ISO code or a precise implementation date. Export teams should refresh reference data from the current Appendix C and validate the accepted AES value rather than creating a replacement code. CSMS #69726210.

OCTAL’s Oman PET-resin margin rises from 2.82% to 3.02%

Commerce case A-523-810 · Applicable September 2, 2026

Commerce corrected a ministerial error in the 2023–2024 review of PET resin from Oman. OCTAL SAOC FZC’s weighted-average dumping margin—and its amended cash-deposit rate for qualifying entries on or after publication—is now 3.02%, up from the May final result of 2.82%. The order’s 7.62% all-others rate remains the fallback when neither exporter nor producer has a more specific completed-segment rate. Amended results, 91 FR 56426.

Assessment of the reviewed May 1, 2023–April 30, 2024 entries remains importer-specific. Commerce says it will issue assessment instructions no earlier than 35 days after publication; a timely court summons can delay liquidation through the injunction-request period.

USDA resets safeguard triggers and publishes 2027 dairy-license terms

Updated WTO quantity safeguards are thresholds—not automatic duties

USDA’s September 2 notice supersedes the previously published quantity trigger levels for agricultural products that may be subject to additional duties under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. Examples for the 2026 calendar year include 608,799 metric tons of beef, 4,976 metric tons of mutton, 16,367,951 liters of cream, 4,375,733 kilograms of nonfat dry milk and 65,006,970 kilograms of butter. Full trigger table, 91 FR 56419.

Dairy allocation shifts to lottery licenses; fee set at $325

For the 2027 dairy TRQ year, USDA transfers 3,144,542 kilograms from historical licenses in Appendix 1 to lottery/nonhistorical licenses in Appendix 2. The same amount is added to Appendix 2, so the notice changes the allocation channel rather than the aggregate licensed quantity. The published total across the four appendices remains 157,450,569 kilograms. Revised dairy appendices, 91 FR 56421.

USDA separately sets the 2027 fee at $325 per dairy import license. The fee applies to each license issued under the program; it is not a per-entry or per-kilogram charge. License-fee notice, 91 FR 56419.

Commerce finds dumping or subsidies would likely recur in two sunset reviews

Welded line pipe, 91 FR 56425 · Vietnam steel nails, 91 FR 56424.

Actions for importers, brokers and trade-compliance teams

1. Build a July 1-forward China 301 exception report. Find entries tied to note 20(vvv)(i)(4)–(6) and (iv)(4), map the successor statistical numbers, preserve full product-description evidence, and await CBP’s correction/refund mechanics.
2. Load and test HSU 2621. Confirm the 13 harmonized and 54 ABI records are present in the production tariff table; test Section 338 Canada lines and retain the governing chapter 99 sequence.
3. Replace the eight FSIS mappings. Add FS3 to the three chapter 21 numbers and change the five egg-product numbers from FS4 to FS3; route exceptions to the PGA-data owner before filing.
4. Update OCTAL current-entry deposits to 3.02%. Do not apply that rate to other Oman exporter–producer combinations, and keep the historical POR assessment population separate.
5. Refresh agriculture controls. Load the USDA safeguard thresholds as monitoring limits—not quota balances—and budget $325 per 2027 dairy license while revising historical-versus-lottery allocation assumptions.
6. Do not overwrite current AD/CVD rates with sunset figures. Track the Korea/Türkiye pipe and Vietnam nail reviews through USITC and any final continuation or revocation notices.

What to watch next

• CBP China 301 instructions: the promised entry guidance, including treatment of July 1-and-later entries already liquidated, unliquidated or still within correction/protest windows.
• Canada Section 338: any HSU correction, rejection-code advisory or clarification of the older guidance’s internal chapter 99/sequence wording.
• FSIS flagging: updated PGA documentation or business-rule messages that explain how the FS3 mappings are enforced in ACE.
• Oman PET: CBP deposit and assessment instructions, court filings during the post-publication period, and any superseding review segment.
• Agriculture: any actual safeguard-duty action or quota-status notice; the September 2 trigger table alone is not such an action.
• Sunset reviews: USITC injury determinations and the resulting continuation or revocation notices for the three covered country/order combinations.

Questions and answers