The EU will appeal a World Trade Organization panel report in Indonesia's case against the EU's countervailing duties on Indonesian biodiesel to the defunct Appellate Body, the EU reported at the Sept. 26 meeting of the Dispute Settlement Body. The appeal effectively ends the dispute, since there's no Appellate Body division that will be able to hear the case due to vacancies on the Appellate Body.
The European Commission on Sept. 26 imposed antidumping duties on hot-rolled flat products of iron, and non-alloy or other-alloy steel from Egypt, Japan and Vietnam. The duties will apply for five years at rates of 11.7% for Egypt, 6.9% to 30% for Japan, and 12.1% for Vietnam. The duties that were provisionally imposed since April 7, 2024, "will not be collected retroactively," the commission said. In the AD investigation, goods from India also were also investigated, but the probe was "terminated without the imposition of duties, because it was not established that Indian imports were dumped."
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on Sept. 23 set aside part of the Federal Maritime Commission's rule limiting the parties against whom "demurrage and detention" fees may be assessed. Judges Sri Srinivasan, Robert Wilkins and J. Michelle Childs held that the commission arbitrarily and capriciously exempted motor carriers from being assessed these fees, given the FMC's "stated rationale" to confine fees to parties who are in a "contractual relationship with the billing party."
The European Commission on Sept. 16 proposed suspending certain trade concessions made between the EU and Israel and sanctioning members of Hamas, extremist Israeli ministers and violent settlers. The commission also said it's "putting on hold its bilateral support to Israel," except for certain support to civil society and the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum.
Egypt launched safeguard investigations on semifinished products of iron or non-alloy steel (billets) and cold rolled coil, galvanized steel and prepainted steel, notifying the World Trade Organization's Committee on Safeguards of the two investigations. Parties interested in submitting their views on the investigations can do so within 30 days of the investigations' notices being published in the Official Gazette.
A jury convicted a Georgia businessman on Sept. 15 for his role in a scheme to bribe Honduran government officials to secure business for a Georgia-based manufacturer of law enforcement uniforms and accessories in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, DOJ announced. Carl Zaglin was found to have paid bribes to secure business with "Comite Tecnico del Fideicomiso para la Administracion del Fondo de Proteccion y Seguridad Poblacional (TASA), a Honduran governmental entity that procured goods for the Honduran National Police and other Honduran security agencies."
The World Trade Organization's Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies took effect Sept. 15 during a special General Council meeting after instruments of acceptance were received from Brazil, Kenya, Vietnam and Tonga, the WTO announced. Those acceptances brought the total number over the two-thirds threshold needed for the deal to enter into force (see 2508250013).
The U.K. on Sept. 12 added three people and 27 entities to its Russia sanctions list as part of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office's recent announcement of 100 new sanctions targeting Russia's "shadow fleet" -- which carries Russian oil -- along with "key suppliers of military components."
Veronica Dragalin, former assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California and former chief prosecutor of the Anti-Corruption Prosecution Office for Moldova, has joined Jones Day's investigations and white collar defense practice, the firm announced. Dragalin has worked on Foreign Corrupt Practices Act matters, among other white collar issues.
An Estonian national was extradited to the U.S. on Aug. 28 to face charges of conspiracy to violate U.S. export controls by sourcing U.S.-made electronics for use by the Russian government and military, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York announced. Andrey Shevlyakov faces 18 total counts related to the international procurement scheme.