China’s 2018 “digital protectionism and mercantilist” policies ranked among the worst for the sixth straight year, “undermining trade and competition in key tech sectors,” warned an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation annual report Monday. “While these forms of protectionism typically rely on behind-the-border regulations rather than tariffs to protect local firms, the objective and impact remain the same -- either to replace foreign goods and services with local ones, or to unfairly promote exports, or both.” Among China’s worst 2018 infractions was a new “standardization law” that shuns international principles and best practices and “could be used to favor local tech firms,” ITIF said. New rules could “potentially force firms to store data only in China if it is related to privately funded, commercially focused research,” it said. China’s refusal to reference its World Trade Organization commitments in the standardization law “raised further concerns about potential discriminatory intentions,” said ITIF. “Unique levels of standards,” combined with lack of transparency about implementation and enforcement “adds further uncertainty for foreign firms” there, it said. “Such nontransparent and discriminatory standards can act as a significant barrier to trade, especially for high-tech.”

Money laundering, obstruction of justice and conspiracy to violate U.S. economic sanctions against Iran are among charges against Huawei, two of its subsidiaries and Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou in a 13-count indictment unsealed Monday in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn. Meng, arrested in early December in Vancouver and remaining in detention there, was charged with bank fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit bank and wire fraud. Meng’s possible extradition to the U.S. to face charges comes as senior Chinese officials travel to Washington this week for trade talks aimed at lifting tariffs on Chinese imports in return for Chinese concessions on allegedly unfair trade practices.

A recent Court of International Trade decision should be a “primer” for importers about how not to game the system when bringing in products with unauthorized Underwriters Labs certification marks, blogged customs lawyer Larry Friedman Monday. The ITC said importer ICCS was liable for damages on merchandise that Customs and Border Protection found displayed the UL mark without the certification body’s authorization, even though similar products were properly registered with UL, said Friedman. Importers should seek confirmation from their suppliers that products bearing UL marks are actually UL-certified, and should double-check the supplier’s say-so through UL’s publicly available verification website, he said. Importers that bring in goods with unauthorized UL marks shouldn't expect leniency, Friedman said. From CBP’s point of view, the UL mark “is a reliable sign that the product is safe,” so CBP “treats this as an important issue,” he said.

Reps. Tim Ryan, D-Ohio, and Mike Conaway, R-Texas, reintroduced this week the Fair Trade with China Enforcement Act, a companion to S-2, which was reintroduced at the beginning of the month by Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and Mark Warner, D-Va. The measures are designed to restrict Chinese investment in U.S. industries that are part of the Made in China 2025 technology advancement initiative. The House bill would bar the sale of national security-sensitive U.S. IP and tech to China, Conaway said. “This bill also keeps the focus on the national security threats posed by Huawei and ZTE, as China frequently uses commercial technology as a vessel to spy on the U.S. government."

Digital trade-related businesses make up more than $460 billion in U.S. exports and add 1.5 million jobs to the economy annually, the Internet Association said Wednesday.

A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson sidestepped questions Tuesday at a Beijing news conference about whether the U.S. risks endangering its trade talks with China if it follows through with threats to extradite Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou to the U.S. from Canada to stand trial on criminal charges. Meng was arrested Dec. 1 while changing planes in Vancouver on suspicion of violating U.S. sanctions against Iran (see 1812060042). In ordering Meng’s detention, “what the U.S. has done, with its egregious nature, severely infringes upon the legal and legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens,” said the spokesperson. China urges the U.S. to “take measures to correct its wrongdoings and withdraw its arrest order for the Chinese citizen,” she said, hinting at Chinese retaliation if the U.S. fails to do so. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative didn’t comment Tuesday.

Policy “mistakes,” especially the Trump administration’s Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports, “continue to be the biggest threats” to global economic growth in 2019, IHS Markit said in a study released Monday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. A “perfect storm” of economic developments “shook markets in late 2018,” including U.S.- China trade frictions, and the U.S. government shutdown, it said. “However, it’s important to note that the stock market is not a reliable predictor of recessions, and the probability of a recession in 2019 remains low.” IHS expects the global economy to grow at a rate of 3 percent in 2019 and 2.8 percent in 2020, “below the rates seen in 2017 and 2018,” it said.

Wedbush Securities maintained an “outperform” rating on Logitech in a Thursday research note to investors, before a scheduled fiscal Q3 financials release Monday. The analyst firm expects $863 million in revenue largely on $334 million in creativity and productivity sales, but it projects a 1.4 percent slip to $229 million in music, driven by an 8 percent falloff in mobile speakers. It projects a 10 percent hike in audio and wearables, 25 percent growth in gaming and a 40 percent drop in smart home. The company is acting to mitigate the impact of tariffs through product cost savings, improved efficiencies, and the positive impact of accounting changes, wrote analyst Michael Pachter. He estimated on the conservative side that 10 percent of Logitech products are affected by up to 25 percent tariffs, for a 50 basis-point impact.

The National Retail Federation blasted trade legislation expected to have been introduced Thursday in the House that would grant broader presidential authority to raise U.S. tariffs on foreign goods. Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis., told Fox News Wednesday he planned to introduce the U.S. Reciprocal Trade Act to give President Donald Trump the “tools” necessary “to make sure that we’re not robbed anymore” on allegedly unfair tariff rates, he said. The EU slaps a 68 percent tariff on imported butter produced in Duffy's 7th congressional district in Wisconsin, while European butter enters the U.S. at only a 3.8 percent levy rate, he said. His legislation would move the U.S. “further away from a tariff war and brings us tariff peace,” he said. Duffy's plan now is to introduce the bill next week after he lands more co-sponsors, a spokesperson told us late Thursday. NRF Senior Vice President David French said Congress “should be working to protect local communities from an escalated trade war” brought on by the Trump administration’s Section 301 tariffs on Chinese imports and China’s retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods. Duffy’s “misguided” legislation “would do the exact opposite, giving the executive branch limitless power to raise taxes in the form of tariffs,” said French. “Congress has already ceded far too much of its clear constitutional authority over tariffs, and we are witnessing the consequences unfold across the country. The idea that Congress would make matters even worse by further abdicating its role on trade policy is simply unconscionable.” CTA shares "similar concerns" as NRF about Duffy's legislation, emailed a spokesperson Thursday.

A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson wouldn’t confirm reports that Vice Premier Liu He will travel to Washington Jan. 30-31 to continue talks with the Trump administration on a comprehensive trade agreement. Reaching an agreement by March 2 could forestall administration plans to hike Section 301 tariffs to 25 percent on $200 billion in Chinese imports (see 1901100008). The U.S. and China “are now in close communication,” said the spokesperson Wednesday. “The two sides are making positive efforts” to reach an agreement “that is mutually beneficial and win-win through trade negotiations and consultations,” she said. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative didn't comment.