The US Department of Commerce adopted a final rule Sept. 11 to modernize the Steel Import Monitoring and Analysis (SIMA) system, it said in a statement.
The regulatory changes adopted in the final rule will require steel import license applicants to identify not only the country of origin, but also the country where steel used in the manufacture of the imported product was melted and poured.
It also expands the scope of steel products subject to the import licensing requirement to include all products subject to Section 232 tariffs, and extends the SIMA program indefinitely, Commerce said.
The final rule also codifies the existing low-value license requirement for certain steel entries up to $5,000, according to Commerce.
The updates come as the US, Canada and Mexico agreed in May 2019 to step up efforts to monitor for steel import surges amid negotiations for the updated US-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Under the agreement, the US may treat products made with steel that is melted and poured in North America separately from products that are not.
Commerce plans to roll out a new online platform for SIMA Oct. 13.
"The updated SIMA will offer free, modern data analytic tools to the public for performing detailed, customized data analysis," Commerce said. "These tools will aid in the identification of changing trade patterns and surges in U.S. imports of steel products, as well as potential circumvention and evasion."
Source: Platts
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