Importers of HS 8708.99 (other parts for power trains) from Japan actually paid 8.8% on the taxed portion of the value in 2026-06 — 8.78% across everything shipped, taxed or not. Measured from official duty receipts, not the rulebook: the statutory MFN base rate on this code is 2.5%. Over the window the rate on the taxed portion moved 2.5% → 8.8%, with the largest single step +8pp in 2025-09. Measured from official US duty receipts · as-of 2026-06 · confidence: measured, not modelled. The HTS base rate is 2.5% — importers actually paid 8.8%, so the trade-war overlay added 6.3 pts, measured at the border (not a summed rulebook estimate). Reproduce exactly: tariff_story(hs: "8708.99", origin: "Japan") · see it at trimtabist.com/tariffs
HS 8708.99. The schedule base rate is 2.5%; importers from Japan actually paid 8.8% on the dutiable value in 2026-06 — the trade-war overlay added 6.3 points, measured at the border. Measured, not modelled.
Over the window the collected rate moved 2.5% (2023-07) → 8.8% (2026-06), largest single step +8pp in 2025-09.
Japan's lower duty (8.78% vs 42.13%) lets it price up to 30.7% above China at the factory and still match on duty-inclusive customs cost. But on the LATEST measured prices, China actually lands cheaper — $5/kg vs $9.89/kg (duty in, freight out).
15 Chapter-99 measures name Japan; scope mapping is partial (several annexes are PDFs) — absence never means exemption. They do not sum, and some are product-specific — the collected rate above is the composed truth.
All goods from Japan · the whole tariff ledger · 87 CBP rulings cite this code · reproduce: tariff_story(hs: "8708.99", origin: "Japan") via /connect. Not customs or legal advice.