We regret but have to temporary suspend the shipments to USA

I manufacture steel/aluminum goods for the US and I have direct experience with these tariffs. Let me explain why it must be this way and how it's actually supposed to work. This is not a defense of the tariffs, just an explanation.

First of all, if you want to use tariffs to boost domestic manufacturing, you must also tax the steel/al content of finished (or intermediate) goods. Otherwise, you put your local producers at a disadvantage, making the tariffs worse.

If you only tariff raw materials, then an american manufacturer has to pay either US steel prices or imported steel + tariff to manufacture, but a company overseas can use the cheaper foreign steel.

So if you want to tax raw materials, then you also want to tax those goods where raw materials are an important part of the cost.

The US has a catalog called the "Harmonized Tariff Schedule" (HTS) which is a catalog of basically everything under the sun [0]. When the steel & AL tariffs were announced, they also published a list of all the HTS codes where the steel/al content would also be taxed.

Last week the US published a revised list of HTS codes to which these tariffs apply, and they added about 400 items to them. For example, the aluminum content of cans is now taxed when it wasn't before.

Flexport has a very cool (and useful!) tariff simulator where you can look up any item and it will tell you if the steel/al content will be subject to these tariffs: https://tariffs.flexport.com

[0]: https://hts.usitc.gov/

I understand where they are coming from. Otherwise you will definitely have people who take a metric ton of copper and slap a sticker on the side and declare that they are shipping stickers around to avoid the tariff. Of course a sane policy would be to have a "trace amounts" option in the tariff if your product contains less than a kg or less than 1% by mass of the stuff to avoid the paperwork, but the people who set this up are the kind of people who worry more about what criminals do than what productive people do. It's just plain badly designed regulation.

Here is how the EU expects PCB imports...

>For PCBs shipped to the EU, a Certificate of Analysis is not typically required for determining tariffs, as tariffs are based on the HS code (e.g., 8534.00 for bare PCBs), country of origin, and customs value. However, a CoA or similar documentation (e.g., material composition report) may be needed for: Regulatory compliance with REACH or RoHS, especially if the PCBs contain restricted substances like lead or cadmium. Customs verification if the product’s classification or materials are questioned.

> Wow this administration is f*ing batshit insane

It's reasons why this that I refuse to associate with Republicans in my daily life anymore. They are undeserving of respect or decency for how they continue to make our lives worse.

Across EU and Asia packet shipments into the US are being shout down until the things are resolved. This is bullshit that hurts everybody, but Americans the most.

> Wow this administration is f*ing batshit insane.

No, it is not insane. This creates perfect "everyone violates the law, we can selectively enforce it" scenario. That's how 10% Intel-like condition can be created for other companies.

We’re living through a political revolution centralizing state and economic power. It’s almost like the pendulum swung away from the Soviet system and now we’re swinging back.

If only people had access to spreadsheet software and affordable desktop computers, they could easily do these calculations.

This is nothing new. The number of hoops a former employer had to jump through to export, from the US into the EU, what amounted to a steel bar with some brackets on it was almost worth more in salary hours than the entire value of the sale.

Not so. There exist BOM analysis tools which are free for manufacturers of products to use - you just upload your parts list and your suppliers, and it works down the list either requesting info from the supplier or using pre-supplied info. The suppliers in turn contact their suppliers, etc. - it’s the suppliers who ultimately pay a few hundred bucks a year for access. At the end of the process you know exactly what’s in your doodad, get a materials compliance declaration, don’t poison any kids, etc.

This is something this manufacturer should already be doing, otherwise it’s unclear how they’re complying with RoHS or REACH.

[delayed]

If you don't go through the work of detailing your materials, then yes, they have to assume worse case as they are not going to go through each package individually and compute an accurate number for you.

Japan Post has stopped shipments as well https://www.post.japanpost.jp/int/information/2025/0825_01_e...

There's a comment asking about this on the blog that they replied to:

> Mouser and Digikey have the same issues, but have professional import customs brokers and do these import procedures and handle all these charges by themselves. The average small US customer have no clue how to do import, they wait someone to deliver their parcel to their door. Which now do not happens, and after several weeks of this parcel hanging at US customs they ask the seller “where is my parcel? I ordered this way many times and every time the parcel arrived to my door” meantime they have to pay import taxes, storage fees etc etc and they simple refuse the parcel and return it back. This is why DHL and UPS refuse to take parcels to USA now until they figure out how to calculate these import tariffs correctly so they can be pre-paid in advance i.e. the US customer knows what he have to pay $$$ tariffs in advance and all these returns stop.

They have teams that are dedicated to handling tariffs and imports. Smaller companies that used traditional shipping now having to jump through insane loops are just calling it quits.

> Why are larger shippers still getting everything through?

Boats. They're still dealing with tariffs, but it's a lot easier to declare an entire container than individual airmail packets.

But having a US presence that can then receive the containers and ship domestically, is kindof reserved for the big boys.

Look at the rates FedEx etc. will charge you for DDP service, and there's your answer.

Damaging economy - and slowly, but surely, closing America from the external world. It does feel very much this way. :|

American own Cultural Revolution.

> But I also have no doubt these decisions aren't being made for the long-term benefit of the US as a whole

Then why are they being made? That is the real question that in my opinion is not being discussed enough. A lot of reacting to what's happening in the US, but not enough pondering about what the real goals are here.

I have my own views about this, which I used to think were somewhat conspiratorial and hyperbolic, but no more.

I had my finger over the 'buy' button for an Omlex board when I saw this, thinking "If I want it I better order before things get weird". I was too slow avoiding the weird......

No, that is the de minimis exemption repeal. This is due to a series of new tariffs on copper and other metals which is unusual (and nonsensical) in that it applies to the metal content of finished and semi-finished products. The de minimus rule exempted low value individual products sent directly to consumers, but this metal tariff affects all importers, unless they deal in one of the carved-out product categories.

To be fair, China has been widely abusing the <$800 rule for a number of years. And it really wasn't not helping either economy. Temu routinely employs forced labor and worse to give those super low prices that US companies can't compete with. https://youtu.be/quGoGgbP-aE?si=FL8pgTssEwn5qEvS&t=387

Probably has an aluminum ring to cap it (with a rubber-like seal that can be punctured with a needle.

What about the aluminized foil-sealed bottles for pills, powders, etc.?

For national security.

The steel/al content is taxed only for some products. Veterinary vaccines have tariff code `3002.42.00` which is not subject to these Section 232 tariffs :)

100% tariff on a few micrograms of aluminum shouldn't break the bank ;)