(WorldTrade Interactive)
President Obama signed into law Aug. 11 the Manufacturing Enhancement Act of 2010, otherwise known as the miscellaneous trade bill (H.R. 4380). The president touted the MTB as part of his effort to double U.S. exports within five years, an initiative that some observers said could now be further advanced by implementing pending free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and Korea.
The MTB extends through Dec. 31, 2012, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2010, hundreds of duty suspensions and reductions on imported manufacturing inputs and other goods that expired Dec. 31, 2009. Importers of goods that lost their duty-free status when the last MTB expired now have 180 days to file for a refund of all duties paid on such imports since Jan. 1. Such refunds are available even if an entry has been liquidated for more than 180 days. Read more here.
