The Commerce Department asked a federal court to dismiss a lawsuit filed by FedEx that said Commerce’s export controls are unconstitutional and impossible to comply with, according to a motion filed Sept. 10. Commerce raised several issues with FedEx’s suit (see 1906250030), saying the company did not “allege a plausible violation” of the Export Control Reform Act, and argued that FedEx failed to provide evidence for many of its points. “Even if these standards were judicially enforceable, FedEx’s allegations are conclusory,” Commerce said.
China released its first batch of tariff exemptions for U.S. goods, which include exemptions for 16 items, according to an unofficial translation of a Ministry of Finance press release. The goods will be excluded from China’s first round of retaliatory tariffs in response to U.S. Section 301 tariffs. The exemptions will take effect Sept. 17 and last until Sept. 16, 2020, China said, adding that it plans to publish more exemptions in “due course.”
A bipartisan group of senators is concerned that U.S. export controls are not strict enough to stop sensitive technologies from being sent to China and asked the administration to review the controls. In a Sept. 10 letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, four senators suggested that China may be using Hong Kong to “steal or otherwise acquire” critical technologies such as artificial intelligence, mass surveillance tools and advanced robotics.
The International Chamber of Commerce released its 2020 incoterms on Sept. 10, saying the newest version is easier to use and includes “explanatory notes with enhanced graphics to illustrate the responsibilities of importers and exporters." The new incoterms also include a more detailed explanation for traders on how to choose the right incoterms for their transactions or “how a sales contract interacts with ancillary contracts," the ICC said.
President Donald Trump issued an executive order Sept. 10 that “strengthens and expands” the State and Treasury departments' sanctions authorities against terrorists, the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control said in a notice. Among several changes, the order allows the U.S. to impose “correspondent account or payable-through account sanctions” on foreign banks that “knowingly conducted or facilitated any significant transaction” for a U.S. sanctioned global terrorist, OFAC said.
The Commerce Department Bureau of Industry and Security issued two sets of Frequently Asked Questions involving Huawei and the extension of its temporary general license, including information on what changes came with the extended license, which transactions are covered and more. But the agency did not say whether it planned to again renew the temporary general license when it expires Nov. 18. “Any decision to renew the Temporary General License will be made at the sole discretion of the U.S. Government,” BIS said.
Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with some of the top stories for Sept. 3-6 in case they were missed.
U.S. farmers and producers are lagging behind in agricultural production, impacting trade and exports, a U.S. Department of Agriculture official said. Those same farmers and producers are suffering from “catastrophic” conditions from trade-war tariffs, leading to a potentially problematic increase in federal aid to the U.S. agriculture sector, trade experts said.
The U.S. trade representative and India's Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal have been talking on the phone, with the goal of trading a return to the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program for better agricultural access, according to two sources following the trade talks. The original industry complaints about market access filed with USTR, requesting that India be expelled from GSP privileges were from the medical device industry and from the dairy industry. A lawyer following the trade talks said that "there's talk -- and this is still a very contentious issue" -- that the pricing controls on medical devices, such as stents, would be changed in India.
The Commerce Department is aiming to publish its advance notice of proposed rulemaking for foundational technologies before the end of September, said Rich Ashooh, the assistant secretary for export administration. “That’s kind of the goal,” Ashooh said, speaking during a Sept. 5 Materials Technical Advisory Committee meeting. “It’s really important for us to get there.”