Supply Chain Research

The U.S. customs authorities plan to reclassify kids trampolines as exercise equipment rather than toys, which means a 5% duty will be applied rather than imports being duty free. That may have been anticipated by suppliers, with U.S. seaborne imports having fallen by 57% in January vs. a year earlier. While this based on technicalities rather than policy, it is worth noting that toy imports climbed 3% in 2017 to reach $14.3 billion. With 86% having come from China in wouldn’t be a surprise to see toys coming into the Trump administration’s crosshairs once the section 301 review of Chine...