Refunds and Remedies: CAPE Payouts, Quartz TRQ, and Intensified Border Enforcement
NEWSLETTER | Trade Insight AI
CBP Begins CAPE IEEPA Refunds; $35.5B Pipeline, Protests Still Vital
STR Trade Report • May 14, 2026
CBP’s CAPE Phase 1 (deployed Apr. 20) is processing IEEPA tariff refunds, with first repayments now issuing; as of May 11, about 15.1 million entries were accepted and 8.34 million liquidated/reliquidated, representing roughly $35.46 billion in refunds and interest, though some payments are delayed pending ACH details. With DOJ able to appeal the CIT refund order by June 6 and future CAPE phases uncertain, importers should not rely solely on CAPE. Monitor liquidation dates and file timely protests on all affected entries, including those accepted into CAPE and those not yet eligible.
Tariffs, Remedies & AD/CVD: Actionable Deadlines and New Rates
USTR Seeks Comments on ITC’s Four-Year Section 201 Quartz TRQ
STR Trade Report •May 15, 2026
USTR will accept written comments by June 1 (rebuttals by June 8) and hold a June 16 hearing on the ITC’s proposed Section 201 remedy for quartz surface products. The ITC recommends a four-year tariff‑rate quota covering slabs and fabricated QSP, with a year‑one in‑quota tariff of 25% and above‑quota 40%, both declining one point annually, and quota volumes of 140m/159m/164m/169m sq ft allocated quarterly. Imports from Australia, Canada, CAFTA‑DR, Colombia, Israel, Jordan, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Singapore, South Korea, and CBERA beneficiaries would be excluded; stakeholders are urged to address public‑interest and industry impacts of adopting—or not adopting—the remedy.
Week Ahead: ITC QSP Remedies, HTSUS Revisions, Key AD/CVD Deadlines
STR Trade Report •May 15, 2026
A busy week of trade actions runs May 18–22, led by the ITC’s remedy recommendations in the Section 201 quartz surface products case going to President Trump and public comments on proposed HTSUS modifications (both due May 18). Multiple AD/CVD milestones also hit: OCTG injury prelims (Austria, Taiwan, UAE) and wire rod (Algeria) scope comments on May 18; CVD prelims for large graphite electrodes (China, India) on May 20 and truck bed covers (China) on May 21; plus Section 337 ink cartridge remedy/public-interest/bonding comments due May 22. Stakeholders can also engage at Denver’s World Trade Day on May 21.
U.S. imposes fencing duties, advances solar cell AD/CVD cases
STR Trade Report •May 15, 2026
U.S. trade agencies issued AD/CVD orders on temporary steel fencing from China, setting AD cash deposits at 129.68% and 184.25% and CVD rates at 49.19% and 178.97%. The ITC scheduled the final phase of solar cell/module cases from India, Indonesia, and Laos (briefs due Aug. 26; hearing Sept. 9; final comments Oct. 8). Preliminary reviews posted dumping and subsidy rates ranging from 0% to 63.60% across OCTG (including a de minimis 0.13% CVD rate for SeAH in Korea), sodium nitrite (India), stainless steel bar (India), steel pipe (Korea), and strontium chromate (Austria), signaling potential deposit changes and refund exposure for importers.
Commerce Releases New AD/CVD Rates, Q1 Scope Rulings
STR Trade Report •May 14, 2026
Commerce issued preliminary AD/CVD administrative review results setting new company-specific assessment rates: 14.15% CVD for Oman Aluminium Rolling (aluminum foil), 5.65% AD for Indian paper file folders, 18.71% CVD for China’s Heze Huayi (chlorinated isocyanurates), 1.62% AD for Mexico’s Tamsa (OCTG), 6.30–10.76% AD for Vietnamese shrimp exporters, and 1.39–1.89% CVD for Korean cut-to-length steel plate; several reviews were partially rescinded. Commerce also released Q1 2026 scope rulings covering aluminum extrusions (China), forged steel fittings (China), large-diameter welded pipe (India), mattresses (Mexico/Poland), and walk-behind lawn mowers (China), potentially affecting product coverage determinations and duty exposure for importers.
Product Safety, IPR & Border Enforcement: What’s Getting Seized—and Why
CPSC Adopts New Toddler Bed Standard, Outlines Criminal Referral Factors
STR Trade Report •May 15, 2026
The CPSC will incorporate ASTM F1821-26 into the mandatory toddler bed standard, with a direct final rule effective Aug. 29 unless significant adverse comments are filed by June 15. The agency also issued guidance on when it will refer alleged criminal regulatory violations to DOJ, highlighting factors such as harm, strict liability, potential gain, specialized knowledge, and awareness of unlawfulness, and will provide OMB a list of all CPSC criminal offenses with penalties and mens rea. Importers and juvenile product manufacturers should update testing/certifications and reassess compliance programs given the clarified criminal enforcement posture.
Norfolk CBP Seizes Unsafe Chinese Scooters, Headlamps, Chairs for NHTSA, CPSC Violations
CBP Media Releases •May 13, 2026
Between April 14-20, Norfolk CBP intercepted 105 scooters (appraised at over $50,000), 30 LED vehicle headlamps (about $1,400), and nearly 2,600 upholstered folding chairs (about $18,000) arriving from China and bound for California, citing NHTSA noncompliance and Flammable Fabrics Act violations confirmed with NHTSA and CPSC. The seizures highlight intensified border enforcement of consumer safety standards—especially for e-commerce shipments—and remind importers they are liable for ensuring compliance to avoid detention, destruction, and penalties.
Chicago CBP seizes 269 conversion switches and suppressors, all from China
CBP Media Releases •May 12, 2026
In April, CBP teams at Chicago air cargo hubs and the International Mail Facility intercepted 107 inbound shipments containing 255 pistol conversion switches and 14 suppressors, all originating from China and bound for U.S. addresses. Many parcels were undeclared, mis‑manifested, or lacked required ATF import approvals, signaling tightened scrutiny of small‑parcel firearms components. Importers and logistics providers handling e‑commerce air shipments should ensure accurate manifests and secure necessary ATF permits to avoid seizures, penalties, and delays.
Louisville CBP seizes $14M counterfeit Cartier, Tiffany, Van Cleef jewelry
CBP Media Releases •May 11, 2026
On May 1, CBP officers in Louisville seized 1,622 counterfeit pieces (1,227 bracelets and 395 necklaces) in an express consignment from Hong Kong bound for Chicago, bearing Cartier, Tiffany, and Van Cleef & Arpels marks and valued at $14.1 million MSRP if genuine. CBP’s Consumer Products and Mass Merchandising Center verified the items with rights holders and seized them under IPR authorities, underscoring heightened scrutiny of express/e-commerce shipments. Importers should expect tighter IPR enforcement, while rights holders can bolster border protection by recording trademarks with CBP’s e-Recordation program.
ITC IPR complaints target GPUs, memory chips; IC case settles
STR Trade Report •May 14, 2026
The U.S. International Trade Commission received new Section 337 IPR complaints covering certain GPU computing systems and data processing unit technologies (by Xockets Inc., with U.S.-based respondents) and NAND/DRAM memory chips (by MonolithIC 3D Inc., naming respondents in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and the U.S.). Separately, the ITC terminated investigation 337-TA-1450 on integrated circuits following a settlement. Potential exclusion and cease-and-desist orders could disrupt imports of AI hardware and memory components, so importers and OEMs should assess exposure and monitor institution timelines.
Policy, Market Access & Facilitation: Shaping the Next Compliance Curve
House Pushes Broad Section 301 Seafood Probe Spanning 17 Nations
STR Trade Report •May 15, 2026
Twenty House lawmakers urged USTR Grier to launch a broad Section 301 investigation into global seafood trade, targeting not just subsidies and IUU fishing but also labeling fraud, banned antibiotics in aquaculture, environmental harm, labor abuses, and overcapacity. They propose covering at least 17 supplier countries—including China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Norway, Japan, Canada, and Mexico—citing that imports supply about 94% of U.S. seafood consumption and that a wide scope is needed to curb circumvention in fragmented supply chains. If initiated, the probe could pave the way for tariffs or other trade measures across seafood categories, raising compliance and sourcing risks for importers.
Rules-of-origin transparency advances; WTO links facilitation, LDC simplification
WTO Latest News •May 10, 2026
On 11–12 May, the WTO Committee on Rules of Origin advanced work to improve transparency and notifications and deepened ties to trade facilitation through an information session on digitization, proofs of origin, simplification, and advance rulings. Members noted new non‑preferential origin notifications from Nigeria (its first under Article 5) and the Kyrgyz Republic, endorsed a 2026 reorganization of document symbols to ease retrieval, and signaled renewed engagement on simpler preferential rules for LDCs following proposals from preference‑granting members and the LDC Group. Updates to the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme (effective 1 January 2026) and the WCO’s modernized Annex K (adopted April 2026) point to more flexible cumulation and proof‑of‑origin practices, indicating lower compliance costs and better preference utilization for traders.
CBP Adds 37 Reimbursable Partnerships to Expand Port Services
CBP Media Releases •May 8, 2026
CBP announced 37 additional Reimbursable Services Agreements (RSAs), allowing private and local entities to fund expanded inspection and processing beyond standard hours at U.S. airports and seaports. The selections span airlines, shippers, airport authorities, and service firms, aiming to reduce bottlenecks and support essential travel and cargo flows. Since 2013, the program has grown to 635 stakeholders, delivering 1.9 million extra processing hours and handling 23.2 million travelers and 2.4 million vehicles; at airports, reimbursements are limited to overtime/support or up to five FTE officers at smaller hubs.
FTZ Board Approves Methods, Wabtec; Tesla Expansion, BASF Subzone Filed
STR Trade Report •May 14, 2026
The FTZ Board approved a new subzone for Methods Machine Tools in Acton/Sudbury, MA, and a subzone expansion for Wabtec Transportation Systems in Erie/Grove City, PA. It also received applications for a BASF Agricultural Solutions subzone in Fenton/Palmyra, MO, and a Tesla subzone expansion in Tracy, CA, plus a production notification for Patheon API in Florence, SC covering oseltamivir phosphate shikimic acid, capecitabine, and a meloxicam intermediate. These actions could enable duty deferral and inverted tariff savings and signal upcoming comment periods and compliance steps for stakeholders across machinery, rail, automotive, and pharma supply chains.
U.S.-Korea Shipbuilding Initiative Targets Investment, Modernization, Workforce Development
STR Trade Report •May 14, 2026
On May 8, the U.S. Commerce Department and South Korea’s trade ministry (MOTIR) signed an MOU creating the Korea‑U.S. Shipbuilding Partnership Initiative and a Washington, D.C.–based Partnership Center expected later this year. The platform will facilitate FDI into the U.S. maritime industrial base, launch workforce training and shipyard productivity projects, and support technical exchanges, with DOC serving as the U.S. point of contact and MOTIR providing staffing and funding. For shipyards and suppliers, this could accelerate joint projects, strengthen supplier linkages, and expand talent pipelines that boost U.S. capacity and competitiveness.
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