The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has issued a final rule, effective April 29, 2004, which revises certain entries on the Commerce Control List (CCL) controlled for national security reasons in Categories 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Part I (telecommunications), 5 Part II (information security), 6, and 7 to conform with changes in the List of Dual-Use Goods and Technologies maintained and agreed to by the governments participating in the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies that were agreed to at the December 2003 meeting.
The Journal of Commerce reports that the U.S. may have to drop 27% duties on Canadian lumber shipments after a NAFTA binational panel ruled that the U.S. International Trade Commission's finding that tariffs are needed because Canadian imports push down prices "is not supported by substantial evidence." According to the article, the U.S. has 21 days to redo its figures or end the duties. (JoC dated 04/30/04, www.joc.com.)
On April 23, 2004, the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued a general license (new 31 CFR 550.575) which lifts most of the economic embargo that has been in place against Libya since 1986.
The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has released a statement on U.S. China trade relations which announces, among other things, that the administration has rejected a section 301 unfair trade practices petition filed by the AFL-CIO with regard to China's worker's rights policies. The USTR explains while there are serious concerns about labor rights and working conditions in China, the administration believes that trade and economic growth, among other things, will move China faster and further toward achieving results. (USTR Statement, dated 04/28/04, available at http://www.ustr.gov/releases/2004/04/2004-04-28-statement-china.pdf)
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has issued an interim rule, effective April 29, 2004, that amends the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement (1) President Bush's April 23, 2004, decision to revise U.S. sanctions against Libya; and (2) the transfer to BIS from the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the licensing jurisdiction for exports to Libya of items subject to the EAR.
On April 23, 2004, the White House announced that President Bush has terminated the application of the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act with respect to Libya, and the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has modified sanctions imposed on U.S. firms and individuals under the authority of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in order to, when implemented, allow the resumption of most commercial activities, financial transactions, and investments.
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has issued a notice requesting comments on a petition it received requesting the imposition of export monitoring and export controls on copper scrap and copper-alloy scrap.
Reuters reports that U.S. officials have warned Asia to be on guard against terror attacks in crowded sea lanes, such as the Malacca and Singapore Straits, and in financial centers, such as Hong Kong. According to Reuters, the U.S. warnings coincided with a threat to attack Asia-Pacific countries that have backed the U.S.' war on terror. (Reuters Pub 04/22/04, available at http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=4904596)
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has issued a notice, effective April 23, 2004, announcing that it has updated its Unverified List by removing one Chinese entity.
Washington Trade Daily reports that the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has recently decided to cancel the next round of technical level talks on steel subsidies and to delay a meeting of senior officials that had been scheduled for early May 2004. According to the article, a U.S. trade official stated that the multilateral talks on curbing government subsidies to the steel sectors and global overcapacity have hit a stalemate, and may need to be moved to another forum to find an agreement. (WTD dated 04/21/04, www.washingtontradedaily.com)