USMCA Automotive Report Released

Tiguan assembly line, Puebla plant, Volkswagen de Mexico

The USTR's office Monday released the second Report on the Operation of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) with Respect to Trade in Automotive Goods . The conclusion of the report is that there is no conclusion. The automotive industry continues preparing for full implementation of the USMCA rules of origin (ROOs) when special flexibilities afforded under alternative staging regimes begin to expire in 2025.

In addition to Major restrictions on LNG Trade, the new sanctions include further restrictions on the import of helium from Russia,

EU 14th Sanctions Package Issued

The European Council adopted Monday a 14th package of economic and individual restrictive measures on Russia. The package includes restrictive measures on additional 116 individuals and entities , as well as sectoral measures on Energy, Third-Country Subsidiaries and other Anti-Circumvention measures, Financial Communications Systems and Defense Industrial Base, Political Activities, Port Access for specific vessels, dual-use and commodity trade controls, as well as legal protections for sanctions compliance and intellectual property.

Outbound Investment Rule Published

The Treasury Department Friday issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to implement Executive Order 14105 of August 9, 2023, “Addressing United States Investments in Certain National Security Technologies and Products in Countries of Concern”. The NPRM builds on the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued by Treasury last August and provides the full draft regulations and explanatory discussion regarding the intent of the proposal, and solicits comment from the public

Commerce Adds Kaspersky to Blacklist

Just in case you're still depending on a Russian vendor for your cybersecurity, the Commerce Department has banned Kaspersky Labs from directly or indirectly providing anti-virus software and cybersecurity products or services in the United States or to U.S. persons. The Final Determination by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is the first of its kind and is the first Final Determination issued by BIS’s Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services (OICTS).

Welcome to Your WTTL

The Washington Tariff and Trade Letter introduces a web-based format for easier review, research and sharing. Clicking on a story in the newsletter will now bring you to the full text on our new web site. A .pdf version of the newsletter is available below. For any questions about website access and your subscription, please contact us at Info@TradeRegs.com – Or call the Editor, Frank Ruffing, at +1.703.283.5220

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Vol 44 No. 27 July 1, 2024

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Instructors claimed expertise in F35 Lightning Flight Training and Operations

Commerce Blacklists Flight Schools for China Ties

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) added six companies to the Entity list Tuesday, four for their involvement in training Chinese military pilots in NATO tactics. BIS also added two UAE- based entities to the Entity List because they repeatedly engaged in “dilatory or evasive conduct, including the provision of false, misleading, or incomplete information, during end-use checks.”

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Commerce Updates "Don't Let This Happen to You!"

The Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Export Enforcement published an updated version of Don’t Let This Happen to You!, a compendium of case examples highlighting BIS criminal and administrative enforcement efforts. The publication was last updated in March 2024.

EU Expands Belarus Sanctions

The European Council today adopted restrictive measures targeting the Belarusian economy, extending the export ban on dual-use/advanced goods and technologies, the measures include maritime navigation goods and technologies, and luxury goods. Also controlled are services exports, transport, and select imports from the Russian vassal state. The regulation requires that EU exporters insert in their future contract the so-called 'no-Belarus clause', through which they contractually prohibit the re-exportation to Belarus or re-exportation for use in Belarus of sensitive goods and technology, battlefield goods, firearms and ammunition.

African Growth Act Report, Eligibility Update

The Office of the United States Trade Representative Friday released its 2024 Biennial Report on the Implementation of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) Report. The top destination markets for US exports were South Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Ghana, and Angola, while the top suppliers to the US were South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana, Angola, and Côte d’Ivoire.

On the calendar

Raimondo Defends Commerce Budget on the Hill

House Republicans’ proposed cuts to the Commerce Department’s fiscal year 2025 budget will undermine the department’s efforts to fight China’s attempts to illegally obtain US …

Senators Continue to Bash Nippon Buy of US Steel

The proposed purchase of US Steel by Japan’s Nippon would undermine US trade enforcement, three Senate Democrats argue in letters to key Administration officials. Sens. Sherrod Brown (Ohio), Bob Casey (Pa) and John Fetterman (Pa) raised the alarm that Nippon’s proposed purchase of US Steel would destabilize the trade enforcement system – and in the process threaten US industry, workers and national security.

Japan-US Commercial and Industrial Partnership.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ken Saito discussed their shared concerns about the use of non-market practices involving supply sources for strategic goods. The two held a ministerial meeting yesterday of the Japan-US Commercial and Industrial Partnership. After bilateral consultations, the two ministers met with their Korean counterpart.

US-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Economic Dialogue

While Hanoi's red carpet treatement for longtime ally Valdimir Putin spurs consternation in Washington, economic statecraft with the country's largest trading partner continues apace. Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Jose W. Fernandez met with counterparts at the first-ever 2024 U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) Economic Dialogue in Washington Tuesday

Blinken Promotes Foreign Investment in US

Secretary of State Antony Blinken urged foreign investors to take advantage of the Administration’s domestic investments in areas like semiconductors and clean energy technology that are making the United States an ever more attractive investment destination. Mr. Blinken pointed to the newly-established Economic Diplomacy Action Group, that is tasked with boosting US competitiveness and attracting increased foreign investment.

Dispute Settlement Reform Slogs Along

The facilitator overseeing the work on the World Trade Organization’s dispute settlement reform presented a report June 20 on various aspects of the central issue concerning the “appeal/review” mechanism that could replace the binding Appellate Body and thereby attenuate the enforcement function of the multilateral trade body, said people familiar with the developments. Without a robust enforcement function undergirding the two-tier dispute settlement system, which is seen as the jewel in the crown of the Uruguay Round trade agreements that created the WTO in 1995, the value purpose of negotiating any new agreements would become meaningless, said people familiar with the negotiations.

Sen. Brown Calls Out Mexican Steel Surge

Wednesday Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), United Steelworkers leadership and Cleveland Cliffs leadership called on the administration to act to stop the surge in Mexican steel imports, which has been attributed to the Chinese government routing steel through Mexico to avoid U.S. tariffs. "The Mexican government is currently violating a 2019 agreement with the U.S. and threatening steelworkers in Ohio and around the country," according to a statement.