Democratic lawmakers joined their republican colleagues in calling out the Biden Administration's efforts to declare the Socialist Republic of Vietnam a market economy. "We are especially concerned by reports that Commerce pledged to the government of Vietnam that your agency’s review will result in a favorable determination, to the detriment of U.S. industries and workers,"the Senators write.
The rumored departure of Deputy United States Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi was made official with a Saturday announcement January 27. Ms. Bianchi, a highly regarded policy advisor had responsibilities for for Asia, Africa, Investment, Services, Textiles, and Industrial Competitiveness.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released monthly operational statistics for December 2023. CBP processed more than 2.6 million entry summaries valued at more than $260 billion, identifying estimated duties of nearly $6.3 billion to be collected by the U.S. government.
October's six-month relief of sanctions on trading with the government of Venezuela appears in jeopardy, as conditions for their continuation appear not to have been met. Bipartisian immigration reform, however, has been supported by increased civil aviation cooperation between Washington and Caracas, while US and European oil companies have been assiduously reviving production in Venezuela's oilfields.
Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson convened a roundtable with representatives of non-governmental organizations, international organizations, and U.S. government implementers to discuss the designation of Ansarallah (“Houthis”) and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issuance of five additional general licenses. Treasury reiterates that Yemen is not subject to jurisdiction-based sanctions, nor will it become subject to jurisdiction-based sanctions on February 16, 2024. U.S. sanctions do not stand in the way of humanitarian activities and the delivery of essential commercial goods to the people of Yemen
The Joint Statement Initiative on electronic commerce co-convenors – Australia, Japan, and Singapore – have escalated negotiations, aiming for a decision at the World Trade Organization's 13th ministerial conference. They race to announce a decision concurrent with the proposed plurilateral Investment Facilitation for Development at MC13, issuing a draft chair's text. The co-convenors released two restricted proposals (INF/ECOM/84 and INF/ECOM/85), reviewed by WTD, for intensive negotiations at the upcoming meeting from January 30 to February 2.
The United States and Mexico today announced the successful resolution of the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism (RRM) matter at the Autoliv Steering Wheels Mexico facility in El Marqués in the state of Querétaro, Mexico, where workers were previously denied their freedom of association and collective bargaining rights. After the United States requested Mexico’s review of the matter, Mexico and the company took several actions to address violations of labor law, including reinstating dismissed workers and correcting other employer interference in union activities.
The leaders of the House Select Committee on China are questioning whether the US government is effectively enforcing a law aimed at keeping out of the US market products made in China by forced labor. Committee Chairman Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc) and ranking Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi (Ill) have sent a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, calling for immediate action to strengthen enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
Since there is no consensus on formalization of the informal process at this point in time, the Chair suggested that members allow the informal process on reform to continue to do as much work as possible to achieve a successful outcome. The prospects for restoring the World Trade Organization's (WTO) two-tier dispute settlement system, particularly its final adjudicating limb, the Appellate Body, appear dim at the upcoming 13th Ministerial Conference. Nonetheless, there seems to be an effort to declare a partial victory at MC13, with expectations of continued negotiations post-conference.
Rewards for Justice is offering a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the disruption of financial mechanisms of the U.S.-designated terrorist organization Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Hossein Hatefi Ardakani is Iranian businessman who has helped acquire and supply sophisticated technology that has supported IRGC weapons production and sales. U.S.-origin flight guidance components procured by the Ardakani network have been identified in recovered wreckage of Shahed drones in Ukraine and other conflict zones.
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is offering a second round of webinars on how to report suspected trade violations online on March 12-14, 2024. CBP will be offering three free webinars about reporting suspected trade violations online using the Trade Violations Reporting (TVR) tool, Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) overview and filing EAPA allegations, and EAPA for small businesses.
The Council of the European Union adopted a position on a regulation to ban products made with forced labor from the EU market. This mandate aims to combat forced labor, introducing improvements to the initial proposal. The proposal defines forced labor per International Labour Organization standards and requires authorities to assess risks from various sources, including civil society submissions and a forced labor risk database. If forced labor is suspected, investigations may be initiated, leading to product withdrawal and market/export bans.
Six U.S. Departments published a Supplemental Advisory, reminding businesses and individuals of the compliance and reputational risks associated with trading with the military regime in Rangoon. While North American companies continue to engage in Burmese extractive industries, the growing ring of sanctions means firms in the Rare Earths, Timber and Precious Metals trade run an increasing risk of negative legal, financial, or reputational consequences.
Under Secretary of State for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Jose W. Fernandez met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Hanoi on January 25, 2024. In their meeting, Under Secretary Fernandez "reaffirmed the United States as an enduring partner" and expressed support for the rapid development of Vietnam’s semiconductor ecosystem as part of the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. This effort includes cooperation to launch workforce development initiatives. "The US will work with Việt Nam in supporting Vietnamese schools to have over 50,000 engineers in this field in the next few years. That's important for Việt Nam's development of a semiconductor industry," Mr. Fernandez stated.
Ohio Democrat Sen. Sherrod Brown is opposing the nomination of Nelson Cunningham for the position of Deputy US Trade Representative, citing Mr. Cunningham’s past support for the TransPacific Partnership. “My values have always been clear: I will only support trade nominees who have rejected the failed policies of the past and have a demonstrated record of standing on the side of workers,” Sen. Brown said in a statement.
A bipartisan group of Senators, led by Finance Committee Ranking Member Mike Crapo called for President Biden to reject the proposal before the World Trade Organization (WTO) that would waive intellectual property (IP) protections for COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics.
Legislation barring federally-funded medical providers from signing contracts with foreign adversary biotech companies has been introduced in both the Senate and the house of Representatives. The Prohibiting Foreign Access to American Genetic Information Act of 2024 would ban all biotechnology companies that are owned or controlled by a foreign adversary, such as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), and whose business practices threaten national security, from receiving U.S. taxpayer dollars through federal contracts, grants, and loans.
CBC Reports British negotiators walked away from trade talks with Canada Thursday — a dramatic development that taps the brakes on a bilateral trade deal between the two Commonwealth nations that has been years in the making. A major sticking point between the two sides remains how much tariff-free access U.K. producers should have to the Canadian cheese market.
The third mid-year meeting under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement concluded with trade officials from the three countries agreeing that more work need to be done to fully implement the trade deal. …
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, forecast that the forthcoming 13th ministerial conference could yield "two or three agreements," notably on harmful fisheries subsidies, a moratorium on customs duties for electronic transmissions, and enhanced flexibilities for developing nations. In a dialogue with Valdis Dombrovskis, European Commission Vice President, at the European Civil Society event, Okonjo-Iweala also advocated for an agreement on investment facilitation, currently under negotiation by 110 countries on a plurilateral basis.
