Analysis
HTS 2504.90.00 covers natural graphite: other under heading 2504 (natural graphite).
Goods classified here enter the United States duty-free at the general (normal trade relations) rate, as do about 91% of the 78 tariff lines in chapter 25. Free here means free of the base duty only: origin-specific Chapter 99 duties such as Section 301 can still be owed.
The other lines in the same group are 2504.10.10 (crystalline flake (not including flake dust), duty-free) and 2504.10.50 (in powder or in flakes: other, duty-free).
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 21239 (Other Nonmetallic Mineral Mining and Quarrying), an industry of 236 US establishments employing 10,238 people. That is the industry code a US manufacturer of the same product would normally use.
Goods from countries without normal trade relations pay the column 2 rate of 10% instead of nothing, so origin decides between free entry and a 10% duty.
All 2 neighbouring lines carry the same duty-free rate, so a borderline choice between them changes the statistics reported, not the duty paid.
Neighbouring lines
| Line | Description | General rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2504.10.10 | Crystalline flake (not including flake dust) | Free |
| 2504.10.50 | In powder or in flakes: other | Free |