The State Department this week published a final version of a rule to expand its regulatory definition of activities that don’t need a license because they don’t qualify as exports, reexports, retransfers or temporary imports. The rule, effective Sept. 16, is largely consistent with the proposed version, though the agency made changes to narrow its scope and make sure certain temporary imports will still require a license.
A bipartisan group of 14 senators urged USDA this week to modernize its process for collecting information on foreign investment in U.S. farmland.
A new set of export controls on U.S. persons activities and other transactions could require “dramatic expansions” to some companies’ internal compliance programs, Akin Gump said this month, including additional compliance training, end-user certifications and greater due diligence of suppliers and customers.
Russian companies have bought millions of dollars worth of drone parts from China-based drone accessories supplier Tarot-RC, risk advisory firm Kharon said Aug. 6. Kharon said the parts were made by Chinese company Wenzhou Feiyue Aviation Technology Co. and have been shipped into Russia in “significant quantities” since the start of 2023 despite claims by Tarot-RC “that it does not engage in such activity.” Trade records and other public data “contradict that assertion, pointing to a consistent influx of Tarot-RC components into Russia, both through direct shipments from Wenzhou Feiyue Aviation Technology Co. and through intermediaries that move products from China and Hong Kong into Russia,” Kharon said.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control renewed two Russia-related general licenses last week that authorize transactions related to debt, equity or currency-conversion. Both licenses were scheduled to expire Aug. 13 but now expire 12:01 a.m. EDT Oct. 12.
The European Commission last week released a set of updated frequently asked questions on its Russia-related sanctions, offering guidance on how it treats "partner countries" in the context of its iron and steel restrictions and export controls.
A new U.S. rule expected this month could expand restrictions on foreign exports of certain chip equipment to China but exclude chipmakers in the Netherlands, Japan and South Korea, Reuters reported July 31.
Members of the Federal Maritime Commission are traveling to the Panama Canal this week to examine the supply chain aftereffects from a recent drought (see 2401180050). The FMC also will review the measures the Panamanian government and the Panama Canal Authority “have identified to improve the infrastructure of the Canal and make it more resilient to any future disruptions, particularly droughts.”
Canada will again impose additional temporary import requirements for U.S.-origin romaine lettuce, USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service said in a report this month. The requirements, which Canada also has imposed in previous years (see 2109280034 and 2308070019), will allow Canadians to import romaine lettuce from the Salinas Valley counties of Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Monterey or San Benito only if the lettuce tests negative for “E. coli O157:H7.” The requirements will be in effect Sept. 26 through Dec. 28.
Canadian traders should prepare for increased scrutiny from the country’s customs agents for a range of imports in the coming months, and should consider conducting an “internal compliance review” to make sure they’re complying with all duties and trade laws, Baker McKenzie said in a July 25 client alert.