Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., is seeking more colleagues to join a letter asking the administration to move Switzerland to the front of the line for trade negotiations. Four other Democrats and two Republicans, including fellow Ways and Means Committee member Rep. Kenny Marchant, R-Texas, are on board. Beyer noted that Switzerland is the country's ninth-largest trading partner. "A Swiss FTA presents an opportunity to negotiate a benchmark-setting agreement with a committed and open partner known for its high standards for labor and environmental protection," he said. Beyer was previously the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland.

The Drug Enforcement Administration is proposing to designate norfentanyl as a fentanyl precursor chemical and control it as a schedule II substance under the Controlled Substances Act. "The scheduling of norfentanyl as an immediate precursor of the schedule II controlled substance, fentanyl, would subject norfentanyl to all of the regulatory controls and administrative, civil, and criminal sanctions applicable to the manufacture, distribution, dispensing, importing, and exporting of a schedule II controlled substance," DEA said. Comments are due Nov. 18.

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a blocking memorandum and formally updated 33 entries on its Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List. The agency published “identifying information” on the entries as a result of President Donald Trump’s Sept. 10 executive order that expanded Treasury’s terrorism-related sanctions authorities (see 1909100048). Most names are for persons or entities in the Middle East, specifically Palestine.

Iraq wants to increase trade with the U.S. and make market access for U.S. companies more attractive, Iraq's Ambassador to the U.S. Fareed Yasseen said. But Yasseen also said Iraq is opposed to U.S. sanctions on Iran and will not take a side as tensions escalate. Yasseen said Iraq is working on two draft laws to boost trade and standardize entrances at customs border gates to convince U.S. companies to do business in the country. “Simply put, we would like U.S. businesses and U.S. society to have a role in the reconstruction of Iraq,” Yasseen said, speaking during a Sept. 10 Atlantic Council event.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Tom Donohue said he doesn't believe that the Trump administration will declare victory if Chinese buyers return to buying pork, soybeans and corn. "I don't think it will be an agreement of any type until it's a matter of substance," he said.

The European Union Council on Sept. 16 updated and strengthened its export controls on arms sales and issued an updated guidance on the changes. The updates include a new “searchable online database” of member states’ arms export data, a renewed commitment to “promote the universalisation and effective implementation” of the Arms Trade Treaty and a push for “a broader range of information-sharing” on export controls.

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

Nigeria is considering increasing its value-added tax rate from 5 percent to 7.2 percent, according to a Sept. 11 post from KPMG. The process will involve “extensive consultations” with Nigerian industry and state and local governments before it is approved, the post said, but could take effect before 2020. Nigeria’s current 5 percent VAT rate is the lowest in Africa, KPMG said.

Egypt’s National Food Safety Authority recently introduced new regulatory requirements for specialty foods that aim to protect Egyptian consumers and minimize “disruption to the stream of commerce, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service said in a report released Sept. 11. The new regulations require certain foods to meet “common safety-based acceptability criteria” and “labeling obligations” and require registrations with the NFSA, the report said. FAS included a list of foods mentioned by Egypt, which include infant formula, cereal-based foods for infants and young children, canned baby foods, “foods for individuals with medical conditions,” and food supplements such as for athletes building muscle. Egypt will implement a transition period to comply with the new regulations that will last until Dec. 31, 2022, or end earlier for certain food categories if they have adopted their criteria, the report said.

In the Sept. 13 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted: