Analysis
HTS 2901.10.50 covers other: other under heading 2901 (acyclic hydrocarbons).
Goods classified here enter the United States duty-free at the general (normal trade relations) rate, as do about 26% of the 1050 tariff lines in chapter 29. Free here means free of the base duty only: origin-specific Chapter 99 duties such as Section 301 can still be owed.
Goods from countries without normal trade relations pay the column 2 rate of 25% instead of nothing, so origin decides between free entry and a 25% duty.
The other lines in the same group are 2901.10.10 (saturated: ethane and butane, duty-free), 2901.10.30 (n-Pentane and isopentane, duty-free) and 2901.10.40 (derived in whole or in part from petroleum, shale oil or…, duty-free).
Census statistics map these goods to NAICS 325199 (All Other Basic Organic Chemical Manufacturing), an industry of 894 US establishments employing 77,304 people. That is the industry code a US manufacturer of the same product would normally use.
All 3 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2901.10.10 | Saturated: ethane and butane | Free |
| 2901.10.30 | n-Pentane and isopentane | Free |
| 2901.10.40 | Derived in whole or in part from petroleum, shale oil or natural gas | Free |