The U.K. added two new subsidiaries to the scope of a general license that authorizes certain transactions with sanctioned Russian oil firm Lukoil's Bulgarian subsidiaries. The license, which took effect Nov. 14 and expires Feb. 14, now covers Lukoil Aviation Bulgaria EOOD and Lukoil Bunker Bulgaria EOOD. The license previously only covered Lukoil Bulgaria EOOD and Lukoil Neftochim Burgas AD.
The Netherlands is suspending its takeover of Chinese-owned semiconductor firm Nexperia, announced Vincent Karremans, the Dutch minister of economic affairs. The Netherlands has had "constructive discussions with the Chinese authorities" and is "positive about the steps the Chinese authorities have taken to restart the supply of chips to Europe and the rest of the world," he said Nov. 19 in a statement, according to an unofficial translation.
The European Commission on Nov. 17 imposed definitive safeguard measures on ferroalloys, including country-specific tariff rate quotas that limit the volume of those imports entering the EU duty-free. Certain manganese, silicon, nickel and a range of metal alloys entering at quantities above the quota volumes can enter duty-free "if their price exceeds the established threshold," but other alloys priced below the "established threshold" will pay a duty "equivalent to the difference between the net free-at-Union-frontier price and the established price threshold for each product type," the commission said. The measures will apply "indiscriminately to all third countries," including Norway and Iceland, which are part of the European Economic Area, though the commission will carry out "trimonthly consultations with Norway and Iceland" to review the impact of the measure.
The U.K.'s Export Control Joint Unit released its latest set of export licensing statistics, covering April 1 to June 30. The data includes licensing decisions, processing times, license registrations and suspensions, and more. During that time period, the agency said, it made 2,716 licensing decisions for standard individual export licenses, down 5% from the previous quarter. Of those standard licenses, 96% were granted, 4% were refused, and none were revoked. The U.K. also said 53% of those applications were closed in the U.K.'s licensing system within 20 working days, up from 48% in the previous quarter.
The EU is hoping to complete its new economic security doctrine next month to outline how the bloc should be using its export control powers and other similar trade tools, said Maros Sefcovic, the EU commissioner for trade and economic security.
The European Commission on Nov. 14 officially published its updated dual-use export control regulation in the EU Journal. The updated controls, announced in September, aim to align the bloc with export control decisions made both within multilateral export control regimes and by nations outside those regimes (see 2509090009). The new updates include controls related to quantum technology, certain semiconductor manufacturing and testing equipment and materials, and more.
The Council of the European Union agreed Nov. 13 to eliminate its de minimis provision, through which goods worth under $174 could enter the EU without customs duties being paid. The council said the new rule will start applying once the EU customs data hub is running, which is expected to be in 2028, since the hub is "currently under negotiation between the Council and the European Parliament as part of a broader fundamental reform of the EU customs framework." The customs data hub will allow for calculation and notification of customs debt on a "per-item basis." To facilitate a speedier implementation of the end of the de minimis provision, however, the council said it committed to work toward a "simple, temporary solution" to impose duties on goods under the de minimis threshold by 2026. No further specifics were provided.
The Council of the European Union this week took two actions on trade in the agricultural and food sector.
The U.K.'s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation renewed a Russia-related license this week that authorizes certain payments involving sanctioned credit or financial institutions. The license, which was set to expire Nov. 6, was extended for two years through Nov. 7, 2027. OFSI also revised the definition of "designated credit or financial institution" and the license's reporting requirements.
The U.K. last week extended a general license that authorizes certain transactions related to humanitarian activities involving Israel, Palestine and Lebanon. The license was recently renewed through Nov. 14 (see 2410100030), and the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation again renewed it, this time through Nov. 14, 2027. OFSI also amended certain reporting deadlines, revised the definition for “Relevant Person," changed the definition of “UK Funded Person” to include any person who has received U.K. government funding in the last five years, and more.