The European Commission on April 11 extended its antidumping duties on monosodium glutamate (MSG) from China to cover imports from Malaysia, following an anti-circumvention investigation on Malaysian MSG. The commission said the investigation found that the exports had "increased significantly" following the imposition of duties on Chinese MSG due to duty evasion. The move imposes 39.7% AD on Malaysian MSG. The commission said it uncovered assembly operations with Chinese raw materials to which less than 25% value was added, along with transshipment of Chinese MSG via Malaysia.

The European Parliament and the Council of the EU reached a provisional political agreement last week on new toy safety rules that would ban the use of certain chemicals, such as PFAS, endocrine disruptors and bisphenols, in imported toys, the European Commission said.

The EU announced on April 10 that it has placed its planned counter-tariffs on hold for 90 days following President Donald Trump's April 9 decision to withdraw his reciprocal tariffs on most countries (see 2504090069).

EU member states this week voted in favor of the European Commission's proposal to impose counter-tariffs in response to recent U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has named Stephen Lovegrove, a former U.K. national security adviser and defense minister, the special representative to the AUKUS partnership between Australia, the U.K. and the U.S. Lovegrove called AUKUS a “uniquely powerful partnership which will develop and deliver cutting-edge capabilities” and help boost the U.K.’s defense industrial base. “I look forward to starting work immediately to help maximise the potential of this vital partnership,” he said.

The European Commission has proposed 25% retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. goods in response to the tariffs on steel and aluminum President Donald Trump imposed last month (see 2503120042), according to a document seen by Reuters, the news service reported April 7.

Switzerland last week announced plans to align certain of its dual-use export restrictions with trading partners as part of the country’s “response to the blockade of multilateral export controls,” a reference to Russia’s vetoing of export control proposals at the multilateral Wassenaar Arrangement (see 2405300063). The changes, effective May 1, will update Swiss controls for emerging technologies related to quantum computing, advanced semiconductor manufacturing, artificial intelligence and additive manufacturing.

The European Parliament on April 3 voted 531-69, with 17 abstentions, to postpone the effective date of new EU-wide supply chain due diligence rules for certain companies (see 2405240031). If formally approved by the European Council, the reporting rules would be postponed by one year for companies with over 5,000 employees and annual turnover of $1.6 billion, along with “non-EU companies with a turnover above this threshold in the EU.” Parliament said this means member states would have an extra year -- until July 26, 2027 -- to transpose the rules into their national legislation, and the companies “will only have to apply the rules from 2028.”

The European Commission hasn't been officially informed by the Bureau of Industry and Security about the agency's plans to pull back from export control talks at the U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council, a commission spokesperson said this week.

The EU on March 31 launched the application process for authorized “declarants” under its upcoming carbon border adjustment mechnaism, which will allow importers and customs representatives to import CBAM goods when the rules take effect in January 2026 (see 2502060060). The European Commission also published new guidance and videos to help companies apply.