The European Union Council urged the United Nations to renew its arms embargo against South Sudan, saying in an April 30 press release the country is still marred by “widespread violations of human rights.” The EU also said it is prepared to impose more sanctions against South Sudan “if such violations continue or the peace process is undermined.”
The European Commission on May 4 released a report on European Union trade remedies, highlighting recent antidumping and anti-subsidy safeguard measures, statistics surrounding unfair imports and details of EU defenses of exporters targeted in foreign trade defense investigations. Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan said the EU needs to continue to ensure imports “come to Europe on fair terms, not dumped or subsidized, and that they do not make us overdependent.” He also said “making sure our companies operate in fair market conditions will be even more crucial in the times of post-corona[virus COVID-19] crisis recovery.”
The European Commission adopted a series of measures to support the European Union agricultural sector during the COVID-19 pandemic and released a question-and-answer guidance for industry May 4. The measures include funding for “agri-food businesses” and private storage aid for dairy and meat sectors, which will allow those producers to temporarily withdraw their products from the market “for a minimum of 2 to 3 months, and a maximum period of 5 to 6 months,” the commission said. The private storage, which will apply to skimmed milk powder, butter, cheese, beef and sheep and goat meat, aims to “rebalance markets by reducing available supply.” Industry can apply for the scheme beginning May 7.
The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of May 4 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):
China will eliminate “purchase tax” on “new energy vehicles” from Jan. 1, 2021, through Dec. 31, 2022, China’s Ministry of Finance said in an April 22 notice, according to an unofficial translation. The measure will exempt taxes for imports of electric cars, plug-in hybrid cars and “fuel cell vehicles” when imported by Chinese car manufacturers and dealers, the notice said.
The Congressional Research Service, in a May 1 report, noted that Congress may want to turn its attention to the U.S.-Kenya negotiations not only because of the free trade agreement's potential economic effects, but also because of mandates in the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) -- Kenya is the second-largest beneficiary of AGOA when oil is excluded.
President Donald Trump suggested China may not meet its purchase commitments under the phase one trade deal and threatened to terminate the agreement if the commitments are not met. “We're going to have to see what's going on,” Trump said during a May 3 Fox News town hall event. “They have to buy. And if they don't buy, we terminate the deal. Very simple.”
The Fish and Wildlife Service is issuing a final rule listing the island marble butterfly (Euchloe ausonides insulanus), an insect species from Washington state, as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. New import and export restrictions set by the agency’s final rule take effect June 4.
The Environmental Protection Agency issued a final rule setting new significant new use rules (SNURs) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) for three chemical substances that were the subject of premanufacture notices (PMNs). As a result of the SNURs, persons planning to manufacture, import or process any of the chemicals for an activity that is designated as a significant new use by this rule are required to notify EPA at least 90 days in advance. Importers of chemicals subject to these SNURs will need to certify their compliance with the SNUR requirements, and exporters of these chemicals will now become subject to export notification requirements. The final rule takes effect July 6.
The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls is reducing registration fees for certain DDTC registrants to help industry mitigate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the agency said in a May 1 notice. DDTC will temporarily reduce registration fees for “DDTC registrants in Tier I and Tier II” to $500 “for registrations whose original expiration date is between May 31, 2020 and April 30, 2021,” the agency said. DDTC will also reduce registration fees to $500 for new applicants who submit their registration application between May 1 and April 30, 2021. DDTC said this reduction in fees “will save regulated industry over $20 million over the course of the coming year.” The temporary fee reduction will apply only though April 30, 2021. The agency added that the fee structure for “Tier III entities remains unchanged at this time.”