In a press release and Federal Register Notice (FRN) published on March 11, 2026, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced a Section 301 investigation into the structural excess capacity and production in manufacturing sectors.
This investigation will focus on “economies that appear to exhibit structural excess capacity and production in various manufacturing sectors, such as through large or persistent trade surpluses or underutilized or unused capacity” such as China, the European Union, Singapore, Switzerland, Norway, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Mexico, Japan, and India.
USTR is accepting public comments for this investigation until April 15, 2026. A hearing on the investigation will be held on May 5, 2026.
USTR’s press release can be found here:
https://ustr.gov/about/policy-offices/press-office/press-releases/2026/march/ustr-initiates-section-301-investigations-relating-structural-excess-capacity-and-production
The FRN can be found here:
https://ustr.gov/sites/default/files/files/Press/Releases/2026/USTR%20301%20FRN%20Industrial%20Excess%20Capacity%203-11-26.pdf
Public comments can be submitted here:
https://comments.ustr.gov/s/
