China’s recently imposed export controls on gallium and germanium (see 2307050018) -- two metals used to produce semiconductors -- were for legitimate national security reasons, Beijing said this week, rebuking comments from U.S. officials and lawmakers who have said the restrictions have no justification (see 2307060053). In an Aug. 9 post on Chinese social media site Weixin, the National Security Ministry said the country's national security concerns stem from an incident in 2009, when an employee working for a global mining company in China tried to access “detailed technical analysis of dozens of Chinese iron and steel enterprises and accurate parameters of each production process.”
Anabel Gonzalez, one of the World Trade Organization's deputy directors-general, said in a farewell column that although progress is being made on improving the WTO, "governments face some tough choices in the months and years to come to deal with pressing matters that, if left unchecked, could seriously erode the multilateral trading system and damage trade as an engine of growth and prosperity."
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.
The U.S. and India formally submitted their bids to end five disputes at the World Trade Organization, including a dispute surrounding India's retaliatory tariffs on some U.S. goods due to the Section 232 steel and aluminum duties. India and the U.S. told the WTO that mutually agreed to solutions were reached in India's disputes against U.S. countervailing duties on hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from India, measures on the renewable energy sector and Section 232 duties on steel and aluminum products. Solutions were also reached in the U.S. objection to India's measures on solar cells and modules and export-related restrictions. The deal to drop the cases was struck during a visit from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the White House in June (see 2306230038).
The EU July 14 asked the World Trade Organization to assess whether the U.S. has complied with a dispute panel report finding that U.S. countervailing duties on Spanish olives violated WTO commitments. The EU said the U.S. "has so far failed to comply with" the panel ruling and that the duties, which could shove Spanish olive exporters out of the American market, remain in place.
Japan's senior deputy minister for foreign affairs, who was responsible for preparing for the G-7 summit in Hiroshima (see 2305220008), told Center for Strategic and International Studies scholars that Japan had two goals for the summit -- outreach to the Global South and supporting a "free and open international order based on the rule of law."
China last week issued a new “foreign relations law” that could bolster the country’s ability to respond to foreign trade restrictions, including sanctions. The law, adopted by the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress and effective July 1, says that China can take “law enforcement and judicial measures” to protect its national interests and those of its companies against restrictions imposed by other countries, and “has the right to take corresponding countermeasures and restrictive measures,” according to an unofficial translation of the document. The law specifically authorizes China to use “legislation, law enforcement, and judicial means to fight against acts of containment, interference, sanctions, and sabotage.”
China implemented export restrictions on gallium- and germanium-related items, which are used to make semiconductors and other key technology, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced, according to an unofficial translation. The restrictions will start Aug. 1 and are to protect China's national security, the ministry said. China is the top producer of the two metals, which are also used in solar panels, lasers and night-vision goggles. Gallium and germanium exporters will be required to apply for a license and report on their international buyers.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is extending its deadline for the new shipborne dunnage program to Nov. 6, Livingston International said June 30. The original directive for the program, published Jan. 6, made the deadline for compliance July 6. The extension was announced to "allow more time for the industry to address implementation issues," Livingston said. The order also includes amendments to "approved heat treatments and marking requirements made under the International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) 15," Livingston said. CFIA did not immediately respond to our request for comment.
The World Customs Organization released version 4 of the WCO Data Model, the latest iteration of its universal language for cross-border data exchange, the WCO said in a June 30 news release. The release of Version 4 includes the introduction of the WCO Data Model app, “a free interactive web-based application providing users the ability to easily view, search, and compare data elements in the WCO DM without the need to navigate through multiple platforms,” as well as providing "access to guidance materials and other national information packages.”