International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
First Solar, a U.S.-based solar panel manufacturer, said a third-party audit found that its factories in Malaysia had workers who were victims of forced labor. The company disclosed the finding in its 2023 sustainability report, adding that some of its migrant employees were "subjected to unethical recruitment," passport retention practices and "unlawful retention of wages."
Five Republican senators, led by Marco Rubio of Florida, are asking the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force to add Contemporary Amperex Technology, Co. Limited (CATL) and its supplier and former subsidiary Xinjiang Zhicun Lithium to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act entity list.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
The National Association of Foreign-Trade Zones said it worked with CBP for more than two years on segregating goods detained under suspicion of forced labor, and it says ending storage at FTZs for these goods "is not justified based on the facts and circumstances involved." CBP announced late last week that goods detained under suspicion of forced labor may be transported to a bonded warehouse, but not to an FTZ (see 2308030062).
Kharon, a compliance risk adviser, said over a million kilograms of shoes and related footwear products have been sent to the U.S. by a company whose factory in Quanzhou, China, has accepted dozens of workers from the Xinjiang region. Those workers were placed by government labor transfer programs under the guise of poverty alleviation.
China criticized the recent additions by the U.S. of Chinese companies to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List (see 2308010030), saying the allegations against Chinese battery manufacturer Camel Group Co., Chinese spice manufacturer ChenGuang Biotech Group Co., Ltd. and subsidiary Chenguang Biotechnology Group Yanqi Co. Ltd. were an "enormous lie propagated by anti-China elements to snare China." A spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said China will take "strong measures" to safeguard its interests.
Importers whose cargo is detained by CBP for forced labor concerns may request to move the cargo to a customs bonded warehouse, but the cargo may not move into a Foreign-Trade Zone for storage, CBP said in an Aug. 3 CSMS message.
DHS and its partner agencies need more funding and resources to handle the increasing enforcement scope of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF) said in the first update to its UFLPA strategy. The update, released Aug. 1 and required annually, also outlines new steps CBP is taking to upgrade its enforcement capabilities and describes plans to soon provide more UFLPA compliance guidance to importers.
DHS will add three entities to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List, the agency said Aug. 1. The additions, effective Aug. 2, will add Chinese battery manufacturer Camel Group Co. for working with the Xinjiang government to “recruit, transport, transfer, harbor or receive forced labor or Uyghurs” and other persecuted groups. Chinese spice manufacturer ChenGuang Biotech Group Co., Ltd. and its subsidiary, Chenguang Biotechnology Group Yanqi Co. Ltd., will be added for sourcing material from Xinjiang or from entities in the region that are involved in a “government labor scheme that uses forced labor,” DHS said.