This week was mostly about works in progress. In trade policy Commerce Secretary Ross visited China to lay the groundwork for President Trump’s visit - increased semiconductor exports may be a (problematic) deliverable. China meanwhile implemented the latest round of North Korean sanctions even as its imports leapt (for technical reasons). Back in the U.S. the Commerce Department applied 220% tariffs against Canadian jet exports, sparking a political controversy with Canada and the U.K. That came as the third round of NAFTA talks wrapped up, with no progress yet on the critical dairy or autos sectors. Fortunately a further rise in the U.S. trade deficit, and Mexico’s surplus with the U.S. came after the talks concluded.

In logistics, Maersk got approval from Brazil for its acquisition of Hamburg Sud, and Hapag-Lloyd carried out a stock offering. Trade activity remains robust, shown by our analysis of nine big U.S. ports, which grew for a sixth month. The biggest issue outstanding though is recovery in Puerto Rico. While the Jones Act was waived late in the week, the problem now is internal distribution rather than international shipping. Our thoughts are with the people of Puerto Rico as they recover from Hurricane Maria’s devastation.

84%: China has implemented the most recent round of sanctions against North Korea, including the closure of all North Korean companies and joint ventures in China. That cuts its exports of oil and imports of North Korean apparel. Yet, imports from North Korea jumped 84% in August vs. July. Subsequent investigation showed this was due in part to delayed shipments from earlier in the year that had been held at the docks.

$5.1 billion: U.S. Commerce Secretary Ross’s visit to China brought with it a call for “very good deliverables” ahead of President Trump’s trip in November. China is looking to boost its imports of U.S. high technology goods. That aspiration that may founder on America’s section 301 review of its intellectual property practices. Chinese imports of U.S. semiconductors grew 8% to $5.1 billion in the past 12 months, but only account for 3% of China’s total imports.

HEBEI LONGSHENG METALS AND MINERALS CO., LTD.