Here is a recap of the latest customs and international trade news:    

Customs and Border Protection (CBP)  

  • Susan S. Thomas was appointed Acting Executive Assistant Commissioner for CBP’s Office of Trade. 
  • CBP modified a withhold release order on Dominican Republic sugar company Central Romana, allowing it to import into the U.S. 
  • CBP added a target deployment of September 2025 for when the agency expects to implement Stage 3 of an enhancement aimed at withholding in ACE the release of de minimis shipments that exceed the $800 per person/per day threshold. 
  • CBP officers at an Indianapolis express consignment facility seized four packages of counterfeit Botox vials with an MSRP of $8,500 had the products been real.  

Administration 

  • The Steel Manufacturers Association President Philip K. Bell wrote an op-ed in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette describing how President Trump’s action to close loopholes and exemptions will strengthen the American steel industry.  

U.S. Department of Commerce 

  • A new Antidumping and Countervailing duty action has been filed against “Polypropylene Corrugated Boxes” imported from Viet Nam and China. These boxes are colloquially known as Vegetable or Seafood Boxes and are used to pack and ship articles such as produce.  

Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) 

  • OFAC issued an alert to raise awareness of recent terrorist designations of international cartels and the resulting sanctions and criminal liability risks for U.S. and foreign financial institutions and others with exposure to these cartels.  
  • OFAC sanctioned Jumilca Sandivel Hernandez Perez, a key leader of a Guatemala-based Transnational Criminal Organization responsible for the smuggling of thousands of illegal aliens from Guatemala into the United States.  

U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 

  • The FDA has released summary data from mandatory registration of cosmetic product facilities and listing of cosmetic products under the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022 (MoCRA). 
  • Customs brokers report that the FDA is down eight inspectors at the Port of Miami due to recent government layoffs. The shortage of inspectors is causing delays as the remaining inspectors try to handle the volume of FDA-regulated trade. 

Department of Justice (DoJ) 

  • The U.S. filed a civil forfeiture complaint against aircraft used by Nicolás Maduro Moros in violation of U.S. sanctions and export control laws. 

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 

  • U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins celebrated National Agriculture Day, reinforcing the importance of American farmers, ranchers, and producers as outlined in President Donald J. Trump’s official proclamation marking the occasion. 

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 

  • President Trump announced the nomination of Bryan Bedford to serve as Administrator of the FAA. 

International Trade Commission (ITC) 

  • The ITC made a determination in its AD/CVD investigation of paper plates from China, Thailand and Vietnam. The ITC found that an industry in the United States is materially injured by these imports that are being sold at less than fair value and that have been subsidized by the governments of China and Vietnam. 

Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) 

  • The FMC is gathering information about seven international maritime chokepoints to identify any regulations, policies, or practices that create unfavorable shipping conditions. 

Federal Trade Commission (FTC) 

  • President Trump fired the two democratic FTC Commissioners Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter. The White House did not offer comment on the firings.  

Industry News 

  • Trade policy whiplash is here to stay. Industry experts are reporting that the time to advocate for predictable trade policy with the Trump Administration is over. The Administration wants the U.S. to reemerge as a manufacturing hub and will continue to pursue trade policy, no matter how harsh, to make that happen. 
  • Retail company Forever 21 filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy and blamed de minimis for “materially and negatively” impacting its business.  
  • A federal court dismissed a lawsuit against Kimberly-Clark Corp. and Ansell Healthcare Products, which alleged that the companies knowingly benefited from forced labor. 

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