The European Commission on Sept. 23 filed a consultation request at the World Trade Organization on China's decision to open a countervailing duty investigation on certain dairy products from the EU, the commission announced. The challenge marks the first time the EU has contested a decision to initiate an investigation, the EU said.
Legislation to increase the visibility of U.S. outbound investment will be considered during House-Senate negotiations on the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, the Senate Armed Services Committee announced last week.
European Commission and Chinese officials met last week for a “frank and constructive” discussion about the EU’s countervailing duty investigation on Chinese electric vehicles, the commission said in a Sept. 20 news release. During the talks, EU trade chief Valdis Dombrovskis and Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao agreed to “instruct their respective teams to put maximum effort to work towards a mutually agreeable solution” and to continue communicating, but Dombrovskis also stressed that the probe is meant to address oversized Chinese subsidies and complies with all World Trade Organization rules.
China’s State Council this week passed a set of revised draft regulations for dual-use export controls, according to an unofficial translation of a Sept. 18 report from state-run news agency Xinhua that was posted to the Ministry of Commerce website. The ministry didn’t immediately release more information. Beijing has recently issued new export restrictions for a range of dual-use technologies, including in August when it published new requirements for certain drones, drone parts, infrared imaging equipment and more (see 2407310015).
China this month launched an antidumping duty investigation on imports of halogenated butyl rubber from Canada, Japan and India, according to an unofficial translation of a Ministry of Commerce notice. The ministry said it plans to complete the probe by Sept. 14, 2025, but it may be extended by six months. It’s accepting comments within 20 days of Sept. 14. The announcement came after China in August renewed its AD order on imports of halogenated butyl rubber from the U.S., the EU, the U.K. and Singapore (see 2408210022).
A bipartisan group of six House members urged the Biden administration last week to step up enforcement of oil sanctions against Iran to reduce Tehran’s ability to fund terrorism.
Four Republican lawmakers urged the Biden administration Sept. 19 to carry out two new Iran sanctions laws, both of which have deadlines that already passed.
Sens. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and Tim Kaine, D-Va., both members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, introduced a bill Sept. 19 that would authorize the president to sanction foreign adversary entities that provide support to China’s maritime militia.
The EU’s ongoing countervailing duty probe into Chinese electric vehicles (see 2408200020) has brought the two sides’ industries to a “crossroads,” and Beijing will continue to lobby against the tariffs through negotiations “until the very end,” China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said this week.