The EU on Oct. 25 officially began registering imports of goods under investigation in 12 ongoing antidumping or countervailing duty probes, allowing for retroactive collection of AD/CVD if certain conditions are met, Denis Redonnet, the EU’s chief trade enforcement officer, said on social media platform X. With the move, the EU may be able to collect retroactive duties on imports related to investigations on epoxy resins, decor paper, iron and steel tubes and pipes, optical fiber cables and more. The European Commission previewed the move in September (see 2409240010).
The EU General Court on Oct. 23 annuled the sanctions listing of Vladimir Gheorghe Plahotniuc a former member of Moldova's Parliament, who was listed for allegedly committing bank fraud and bribing the former president of Moldova in exchange for political favors.
All 27 EU member states have either adopted a regime to screen foreign direct investments or have begun official talks to soon put one in place, the European Commission said in its annual report on FDI released last week. The report, which analyzes member state FDI screening activities for 2023, said 24 members so far have a screening tool in place, up from 21 around the same time last year (see 2310200038).
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is likely to react “more negatively and more directly” than his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, to the EU’s plan to start taxing carbon-intensive imports, a former U.S. trade official said Oct. 17.
A new U.K. general license authorizes certain transactions with sanctioned parties involving U.K. government debt. The license, issued Oct. 14, allows certain payments "in respect of UK Government Debt where either the legal holder or the direct or indirect recipient or beneficiary of that payment is a UK" sanctioned or "prohibited" party, "provided the payments are held in Frozen Accounts or UK Prohibited Persons Accounts." The license defines "prohibited" parties as people and entities subject to certain sanctions against Russia or Belarus, and it defines "UK Government Debt" to mean "all securities issued by, or on behalf of His Majesty's Government in respect of money borrowed by His Majesty's Government."
The EU's Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which could take effect for some companies Dec. 30, may violate World Trade Organization rules and should be modified to ensure it's compliant, according to a new policy brief released by the European Center for International Political Economy (ECIPE).
Group of 7 officials meeting in Rome last week said they have made progress on semiconductor supply chain issues and stressed the importance of addressing industrial policies that are unfairly propping up certain domestic chip industries.
The U.K. this week renewed a general license that authorizes certain transactions related to humanitarian activities involving Israel, the “occupied Palestinian territories” and Lebanon. The license was scheduled to expire May 14, 2025, but now will expire Nov. 14, 2025. The U.K. also amended the license’s reporting deadlines and added Lebanon to the scope of regions that are authorized by the license; the license previously covered only Israel and the “occupied Palestinian territories.”
The Council of the European Union on Oct. 8 extended the sanctions regime on Nicaragua for another year, until Oct. 15, 2025. The sanctions, which currently cover 21 people and three entities, were originally imposed in 2019 to respond to Nicaragua's "deteriorating political and social situation."
The U.K. on Oct. 8 revised its antidumping duties on ceramic tiles from China, revoking the duties for tiles where the largest surface equals or exceeds 0.36 meters squared "unless the differential relief on the largest surface exceeds" 3 millimeters. The U.K. also revoked duties for tiles with an "edge equal to or longer than 600mm, unless the differential relief on the largest surface exceeds 3mm." Another change adds "finishing ceramics" to the description of the covered goods, while "glazed and unglazed" will be removed from the description. The notice also extends the existing duty rates for another five years, until Nov. 24, 2027.