Government Affairs & Legal

IHA has collected a variety of resources to help members stay on top of current legal and technology issues.

Trade and Tariff Developments for 2020

Significant progress has been made with regard to the issue of tariffs in the trade dispute between the United States and China. The USTR announced on Dec. 13, 2019, the completion of a Phase One trade agreement with China. U.S. tariffs on List-4B products that were subject to 15% duties set to commence on Dec. 15, 2019, were cancelled, and tariffs on List 4A products…

Efforts to Correct the Universal Postal Union (UPU) Problem Spark Further Changes

In a recent article posted on the Bloomberg website, IHA member Mighty Mug was singled out for successfully drawing the President’s attention to a vast disparity in shipping rates between U.S. and Chinese companies. The efforts to correct the United Postal Union (UPU) problem are possibly leading to other changes in US foreign policy and specifically with the U.S.’s…

Trade and Tariff Saga Continues

Trade and tariff issues are a priority on the IHA’s government affairs agenda, with tariffs on China being the main concern. Hopefully, a “phase one” deal between the U.S. and China can be finalized to bring some relief from the 16-month trade war that’s disrupted global supply chains, but until a deal happens the tariff exclusion process and/or sourcing alternatives to China…

UPU Agreement a Win for Housewares Industry

The housewares industry realized a victory when the Universal Postal Union (UPU) agreed in September to revise international shipping rates to not discriminate against U.S. shippers. Founded in 1875, the UPU sets postal rates among its member countries and had a formula where it cost about $20 to mail a small parcel in the U.S., but about $5 from China to the U.S. The…

Low Chinese Shipping Rates Severely Undercut American Businesses

An international postal agreement has been tipping the scales in favor of Chinese merchants for decades, allowing the e-commerce market to continue to become the domain of the Chinese at the expense of U.S. companies and taxpayers. The USPS is part of an arcane arrangement with the Universal Postal Union (UPU), which is the postal arm of the United Nations. This arrangement…

President Trump Issues Memorandum Ordering Level Playing Field for Terminal Dues Charges

On August 23, President Donald Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum addressing the issue of terminal dues, recognizing the damage they are doing to American business, offering a policy for reform and timeline for progress and recommendations if sufficient progress is not made by the deadline, including the possibility of self-declared rates. Terminal dues are below-cost…

Proposed Tariffs To Have Greater Impact On Housewares Industry

The list of tariffs affecting the housewares industry will have a greater impact on home and housewares products with the proposed tariff rate recently increased to 25 percent from the original 10 percent announced by the United States Trade Representative (USTR). The list includes more than 6,000 tariff subheadings, affecting $200 billion of goods imported from China. “The…

IHA Opposes Latest Round of Proposed Tariffs

The latest round of tariffs on products coming from China announced by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) affects $200 billion of goods imported and if enacted would have an impact on the housewares industry. The International Housewares Association announced today it will activate its resources at the Association and member levels to provide comment on the…

Why is the USPS Charging You 5x What They Charge Chinese Shippers?

By Jayme Smaldone Below is an elongated version of an OpEd I wrote for The Wall Street Journal, published on February 6, 2018. Please share with anyone that warehouses goods in the US. President Trump recently tweeted about mounting problems with the U.S. Postal Service. Specifically, he noted that the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is not charging Amazon enough to deliver…