The Trump administration should be doing more to restrict sales of emerging technologies to China, lawmakers said in interviews earlier this month. Senators commended the administration for increasing foreign direct investment restrictions (see 2002260042) and going further than previous administrations in confronting China’s unfair trade practices, but said they will continue pushing for tighter restrictions.

The World Customs Organization issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:​​

There's been a recent uptick in international enforcement activity involving counterfeit medical goods, the World Customs Organization said in a notice. “ While the world is gripped by the fight against COVID-19, criminals have turned this into an opportunity for fraudulent activity,” the WCO said. “There have been an alarming number of reports quoting seizures of counterfeit critical medical supplies, such as face masks and hand sanitizers in particular. Customs and law enforcement agencies in China, Germany, Indonesia, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States and Vietnam, to name but a few, have reported such seizures in the past three weeks.” There's also been a recent trend of export licensing requirements for “certain categories of critical medical supplies, such as face masks, gloves and protective gear,” the WCO said.

Dubai Customs introduced several temporary measures to help ease pressure on companies impacted by the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, according to a March 26 KPMG post. The agency will refund 1% of the customs duty imposed on certain imported goods sold locally and exempt berthing fees for arrivals and departures for certain vessels registered at Dubai's Al Hamriyah Port between March 15 and June 30. It will also revoke the “bank or cash guarantee required to undertake customs broking activities” and will refund guarantees already submitted by brokers and clearing companies.

Serbia recently announced an export ban on a range of “essential commodities” to prevent a “critical shortage” caused by the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, according to an unofficial translation of a March 14 government notice. The measure restricts exports of agricultural products and medical equipment, including sunflower seeds, sunflower oil, sugar, certain yeast products, certain soaps, gloves, “wipes,” certain masks, goggles and certain disinfectants. The export ban applies for 30 days. The notice is updated through March 27.

Russia is considering restricting exports of “relevant groups of foods” and medicine due to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, according to an unofficial translation of a March 23 government notice. The government will conduct weekly reviews of the country’s supplies before proposing export restrictions, the notice said. Russia had placed temporary export restrictions on processed grains last week -- including buckwheat, rice and oat flakes -- but recently withdrew that measure, according to a March 24 report from Reuters.

The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of March 27 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):

Vietnam will “temporarily suspend rice exports” due to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, according to a March 25 report from CustomsNews, the mouthpiece for Vietnam Customs. The virus has caused a spike in global demand for food reserves, including rice, which has dwindled Vietnam’s domestic rice supply as exports have increased, the report said. If rice exports continue at their current rate, Vietnam “may face a shortage of rice for domestic consumption,” the report said. Under the measure, Vietnam will not sign new rice export contracts until it stabilizes its domestic supply, according to a March 25 report in the Bangkok Post.

India is extending the deadlines for applications for the imported food product urad due to the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in a March 23 notice. The deadline was set to expire April 3 but will now last through April 15, the notice said.

The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls is suspending pickup and drop-off courier services to comply with the government’s guidance to “maximize” social distancing, the DDTC said in a March 26 notice. The agency will instead send documents to companies through the U.S. Postal Service, and said companies should continue to mail documents to DDTC “as they have done in the past.” Certain “special requirements” may apply if sending or receiving classified documents, DDTC said. Questions about classified documents should be directed to EisenbeissBK@state.gov and DiggsYM@state.gov.