Consumer goods conglomerate 3M agreed to pay over $6.5 million to settle charges it violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act's internal controls provisions, the SEC announced Aug. 25. 3M's China-based subsidiary allegedly arranged for Chinese government employees of state-owned healthcare facilities to travel to international conferences, educational events and healthcare facility visits as part of the subsidiary's "marketing and outreach efforts."
SpaceX illegally discriminated against asylees and refugees in its hiring practices by claiming it could only hire U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents under export control laws, DOJ alleged in a lawsuit filed on Aug. 24. Export control laws "impose no such hiring restrictions," the agency said, adding that the company violated the Immigration and Nationality Act in its hiring practices.
The World Trade Organization will hold a public forum on Sept. 12 with the goal of exploring how "digitalization and inclusive trade policies can support" a "greener and more sustainable future," the WTO announced. The event will feature a lecture by former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the WTO World Trade Report for 2023, "high-level plenaries," working sessions and networking opportunities. The plenary sessions will focus on "how trade can keep the ambition of the Paris Agreement of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees alive" and feature the topics of "fostering sustainable development through trade, the decarbonization of the transport sector, inclusive trade policies, and how technology can boost green innovation," the WTO said.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the French government will strengthen controls on foreign investment to include companies involved in the extraction and processing of critical raw materials. Le Maire pointed to export controls imposed on gallium and germanium by China as evidence of the measures' and minerals' importance (see 2308150028).
China will suspend all imports of aquatic products from Japan starting Aug. 24 in response to Japan's release of nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean (see 2308220022), the General Administration of Customs announced, according to an unofficial translation. The customs administration said the move, which also covers edible aquatic animals, is meant to shield the health of Chinese consumers and ensure the safety of food imports.
Hong Kong is set to impose import restrictions on seafood from Japan in response to the Japanese government's plan to discharge Fukushima nuclear sewage, the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) announced, according to an unofficial translation. Hong Kong Chief Executive Lee Kar-chiu made the move in response to the Japanese government's 30-year plan to release sewage discharge from the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, which was flooded and destroyed by a tsunami in 2011, into the Pacific Ocean. "If there is any problem with the discharge of nuclear sewage in Fukushima, the ecological environment and food safety will inevitably be seriously damaged," Hong Kong said.
A spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said China "welcomes" the Bureau of Industry and Security's recent move to drop 33 entities from its Unverified List after the agency carried out end-use checks (see 2308210015). The move, which included Chinese companies, shows that both countries can address "specific concerns through communication based on mutual respect," the spokesperson said. In a separate release, the country's Ministry of Commerce said the BIS decision is "conducive to the normal trade between Chinese and American companies and is in line with the common interests of both parties," according to an unofficial translation. BIS made the move after an agency policy change that lets it move companies from the UVL to the Entity List if BIS is unable to conduct an end-use check on those companies within 60 days.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in an Aug. 21 summary order affirmed a New York district court's dismissal of Brutus Trading's qui tam False Claims Act against Standard Chartered, which accused the financial firm of facilitating illegal banking transactions on behalf of sanctioned parties. After Brutus filed the qui tam case, in which a party with evidence of fraud against the U.S. government can file a lawsuit on behalf of the government, the U.S. then moved to toss the matter after finding that the "factual allegations were unsupported," the legal theory "was not cognizable, and the continuation of the suit would waste considerable government resources" (Brutus Trading v. Standard Chartered Bank, 2nd Cir. # 20-2578).
Hong Kong and Ukraine formally accepted the World Trade Organization's Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, becoming the 15th and 16th parties to do so, the WTO announced. The deal would impose rules to crack down on subsidies for illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing. The announcement by Hong Kong and Ukraine means nearly 40% of member states have ratified the deal, which requires acceptance by two-thirds of WTO members to enter into force.
The U.K. High Court of Justice's Administrative Court on Aug. 18 rejected a sanctions designation appeal by Eugene Shvidler, an associate of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich and a director of mining giant Evraz. The court ruled the designation was "proportionate" and not "discriminatory."