Myanmar recently published new labeling requirements for imported prepackaged food, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service said in a March 17 report. The change requires food labels to include certain minimum information, including a list of ingredients, the country of origin, date marking and instructions for use. The requirements will take effect Jan. 20, 2023.
The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports again postponed by a week a new surcharge meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), the two ports announced March 18. The ports originally planned to begin imposing the fee in November last year, but have postponed it each week since. The latest extension delays the effective date until March 25.
The Bureau of Industry and Security last week released a list of commercial and private aircraft that have violated U.S. export controls by flying into Russia and which require a license for “any form of service.” The agency said it will impose penalties, jail time or loss of export privileges for any company or person that violates the Export Administration Regulations by providing “any form of service” to the aircraft without a required BIS license.
Even as the European Council agreed on the approach to a carbon border adjustment mechanism, a lawmaker in the EU Parliament said that the fact that CBAM did not make it out of the trade committee showed how thorny it will be to get a law passed to hike tariffs on imports that do not come from countries that are fighting climate change as strongly as the EU.
The Federal Maritime Commission will adopt a proposed rule to modernize and clarify some requirements associated with the filing of marine terminal operator schedules, the commission said in a final rule issued this week. The rule, originally proposed in September (see 2109210014), is intended to update “outdated” requirements and clarify existing definitions, such as “bulk cargo” and “marine terminal operator.” The changes, which don’t affect policy, take effect April 18.
The Census Bureau has received mostly opposing comments on a proposal for a new country of origin data element in the Automated Export System but hasn’t yet made a decision about whether to move forward with the change, said Kiesha Downs, chief of the agency’s Foreign Trade Division’s regulations branch. The rule (see 2112140033), which would require U.S. exporters of foreign-produced goods to declare the country of origin (COO) for their item in AES, could lead to costly compliance challenges (see 2201040044), companies and trade groups recently told the agency.
Senators on the Finance Committee agreed that deepening trade ties with countries in Asia is important both for geopolitical and economic reasons, but they disagreed during a March 15 hearing on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework about whether a traditional free-trade agreement is a better approach than the IPEF.
The Bureau of Industry and Security has started a large-scale industry outreach effort to ensure companies understand compliance requirements under the new Russian export controls, including direct talks with U.S. and foreign businesses and work on new guidance. The effort, previewed by BIS officials this week, underscores the significant export control and regulatory undertaking by the agency since late February, which has resulted in hundreds of pages of new Russian and Belarusian export restrictions.
The Federal Maritime Commission this week extended the public comment deadline for its pre-rule on new demurrage and detention billing requirements (see 2202070026 and 2202140002) by 30 days. Comments were originally due March 17, but industry will now have until April 16 to submit feedback. More than 30 trade groups had asked FMC earlier this month to extend the deadline (see 2203070006).
Ahead of a meeting with Chinese officials, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan publicly warned China that it will face severe penalties if it helps Russia evade Western sanctions. The Biden administration is “watching closely” to see whether Beijing provides Moscow with “material support or economic support,” Sullivan told CNN March 13, which could give Russia an economic lifeline as it faces crippling financial restrictions from Europe, the U.S. and many of its trading partners.