Sandler Travis hired two trade lawyers and an import compliance specialist to expand its trade service offerings, the law firm announced Aug. 23. Lawyer William Marshall will focus on import and supply chain issues while Narges Kahvazadeh will provide legal counsel on export controls and sanctions. Regina Walton, a licensed customs broker, joined the firm as an auditor with a focus on import compliance matters.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued two new general licenses Aug. 23 that authorize imports of Russian diamonds and diamond jewelry that were located outside the country when a current ban on imports of such goods took effect.
CBP is seeking feedback on the information that the agency intends to collect in ACE to enforce import bans on Russian seafood and diamonds.
China’s recently announced export restrictions on antimony (see 2408150022) are expected to cause supplies of the critical mineral to tighten and prices to rise sharply, the Center for Strategic and International Studies said Aug. 20.
The Environmental Protection Agency wants manufacturers, importers and exporters of 31 chemical substances that are subject to premanufacture notices or microbial commercial activity notices under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to notify the agency at least 90 days ahead of time, it said in a notice on the proposed significant new use rules (SNUR).
In the Aug. 14 Customs Bulletin (Vol. 58, No. 32), CBP published a proposal to revoke ruling letters concerning certain hearing amplification devices.
China soon will impose new export controls on a set of key critical minerals, including antimony, and technology used to process those minerals, the country’s commerce ministry said Aug. 15, according to an unofficial translation. Antimony can be used in the production of certain batteries, weapons and more. The minerals and technology “have a significant impact on national security,” China said, and exports will need a license before they can be shipped abroad. The controls take effect Sept. 15.
The State Department this week is publishing a final version of a rule to expand its regulatory definition of activities that don’t need a license because they don’t qualify as exports, reexports, retransfers or temporary imports. The rule, effective Sept. 16, is largely consistent with the proposed version, though the agency made changes to narrow its scope and make sure certain temporary imports will still require a license.
The Commerce Department Aug. 14 published a notice announcing the beginning of administrative reviews for certain firms subject to antidumping and countervailing duty orders with July anniversary dates. Producers and exporters subject to any of these administrative reviews on China or Vietnam must submit their separate rate certifications or applications by Sept. 13 to avoid being assigned high China-wide or Vietnam-wide rates.
The Commerce Department has published the preliminary results of its antidumping duty administrative review on forged steel fittings from China (A-570-067). In the final results of this review, Commerce will set assessment rates for subject merchandise from the two companies under review entered Nov. 1, 2022, through Oct. 31, 2023.