The Bureau of Industry and Security is “significantly reducing licensing requirements” for Australia and the U.K. “to foster defense trade and technological innovation” under the Australia-U.K.-U.S. (AUKUS) Enhanced Trilateral Security Partnership, it said in an April 18 news release.

After October's deadline passed without an agreement between the U.S. and the EU on a global trade deal for steel and aluminum (see 2404040034), talks are still ongoing, the European Commission’s top trade official said during a news conference April 18.

The U.S. announced on April 18 a new package of export controls and sanctions against Iran and its activities that support Russia’s war effort, in retaliation for Iran’s attack five days earlier on Israel.

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai gave testimony April 17 to the Senate Finance Committee regarding President Joe Biden’s 2024 trade policy agenda. She touched mainly on trade deal enforcement, U.S. exporters’ access to new markets and the USTR’s new stance on digital trade, though she also discussed issues such as forced labor and the upcoming legislation on the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program.

Congress should approve tougher sanctions and import restrictions to stem the deadly and illegal flow of fentanyl into the U.S., the House Select Committee on China said in a new report April 16.

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The Bureau of Industry and Security recently met with a group of industry and university officials to hear about challenges plaguing export compliance professionals, including problems doing due diligence on foreign parties, lengthy timelines for export license applications and more.

U.S. companies should expect more retaliation from China if the Bureau of Industry and Security adds more major Chinese technology firms to its Entity List this year, Paul Trulio, a China and technology policy expert, said during an event last week hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Trulio and other panelists also said it’s unclear exactly how a possible second Trump administration may tweak U.S. export control policy toward Beijing, but they said it’s possible former President Donald Trump, if reelected, could significantly increase restrictions on Chinese firms through potential financial sanctions and may pressure allies to do the same.

The Treasury Department is preparing to issue a proposed rule that could expand the powers of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., allowing CFIUS to impose higher penalties and collect a broader array of information from parties involved in non-notified transactions. The rule also could give CFIUS broader subpoena abilities, expand the circumstances in which it may fine a company, set timelines for responses to mitigation proposals, and more.

The Bureau of Industry and Security is encouraging industry and foreign countries to do more to ensure American high-tech products don't end up in Russian weapon systems, a Commerce Department official said April 10.