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“COVID 4” Legislation

From March through early June, Congress passed five bills to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic that became law. In order of passage they are: H.R. 6074, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act (“COVID 1”); H.R. 6201, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“COVID 2”); H.R. 748, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security…

Global Retail Intelligence – June

June 15 – Aldi UK Extends Home Delivery Trial In partnership with Deliveroom, Aldi UK has extended is home delivery to London through a store located in Camden. An online offering of more than 200 items will be deliverable to customers within two miles of the store with newly added delivery as soon as 30 minutes following delivery. Aldi confirmed that if the trial…

Container Space Tightens from Asia to US

Due to lack of demand, carriers cancelled 20% of Asia to US sailings for the month of May. They have already announced plans to cancel 20% of their Asia to US sailings for the month of June. The containers already booked for June sailings reinforces that demand is starting to rebound. The uptick in container volume is a positive sign for all stakeholders but also presents…

Covid-Related Business Tools – CARES Act

Employee Retention Credit (Section 2301 of the Act): Refundable payroll tax credit equal to 50% of up to $10,000 in wages per employee, including health benefits, if employer operations were fully/partially suspended due to a COVID-19 governmental shutdown, or if gross receipts declined more than 50% in a quarter compared to the same quarter in 2019. Credit applies…

Global Retail Intelligence – May

May 18 – Indian Retailers See Spike as Pandemic Easing BeginsRetailers in India, including Metro Cash & Carry, Lots Wholesale Solutions, Future Group and V-Mart Retail have seen a spike in purchases of fast moving consumer goods and high-value items as measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic have been eased and more stores are open to customer walk-ins. Retailers have…

Sourcing Shift from China Continues

The prolonged trade war between the US and China plus the emergence of COVID-19 have changed how importers should evaluate risk when finalizing their sourcing options. Importers that rely 100% on China for sourcing are more at risk than importers that have multiple sourcing options. Many US importers have already learned a lesson from relying too heavily on China for their…

Update to Special Reports on Coronavirus Assistance: Federal Legislation and Administrative Actions as of April 24, 2020

This special report is to update previous editions with information on the latest congressional legislation (“COVID 3.5”) and details concerning earlier bills and administrative actions. Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, H.R. 266, or (“COVID 3.5”): On April 24, the President signed H.R. 266 to appropriate some $484 billion in additional federal…

Administration Defers Duties on Certain Tariffs

On April 19, 2020, President Trump issued an Executive Order based on National Emergency authority declared March 13 to give the Treasury Secretary the ability to defer payments of certain import duties, taxes and fees for 90 days. This was followed by a Temporary Final Rule published April 20 by the DHS Customs and Border Patrol that states the 90-day deferral doesn’t…

Putting Coronavirus in Perspective: What Does it Mean for the Future of Globalization?

By Professor Joshua Ault As COVID-19, or Coronavirus, continues to spread across the country and the world, the most important conversations we are having now are how to stay safe and how to protect the economy from a sudden drop in activity. However, a secondary theme that we are tackling at Arizona State University’s Thunderbird School of Global Management is how COVID-19…