Jonathan Gold (Jonathan Gold), Vice President of Supply Chain and Customs Policy at the U.S. National Retail Federation (NRF) gave his answers to questions from Rough&Polished on conflict minerals regulation.
In your opinion, what impact will the conflict minerals regulation have on retailers?
The conflict minerals regulation will have a significant impact on retailers and other industries who are covered by the regulation. Many are in the process now of working with their vendors to determine whether any of their products contain tin, tungsten, tantalum or gold. It’s extremely difficult for many retailers, who have to go back many levels within the supply chain, to determine if the minerals are in their products.
Will it cause consumer price increases?
It’s too early to say whether or not the regulation will cause an increase in consumer prices. The regulation certainly could have an impact on sourcing decisions, which could further impact the region.
In October, the National Retail Federation supported the appeal to a federal court, arguing that the final rule should not apply to retailers. What was the Court’s decision?
The court has not yet ruled on the appeal.
Is NRF going to undertake any further steps to exempt retailers from the Conflict Minerals Law?
First and foremost we support the underlying goal of the regulation to end the atrocities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, we continue to have concerns about how the regulation is being implemented and the impact it is having on the retail industry. We will continue to work with Congress, the administration and other stakeholders to address implementation issues that companies are encountering.
What is NRF's retail sales outlook for this holiday shopping season?
NRF estimates that holiday sales will increase 3.9 percent this year to $602 billion. NRF’s holiday sales forecast is based on an economic model using indicators like housing data, unemployment and previous monthly retail sales reports and includes retail industry sales from November and December.
Olga Patseva, Editor in Chief of the American Bureau, Rough&Polished
