J.P. Morgan now offers an E-Customs Payment Solution meant to make it easier to make cross-border payments, the company said in an emailed June 20 news release. "Importers in China are required to provide supporting documents to their banks prior to making payments to overseas suppliers, a process that is often labor-intensive and time-consuming," the company said. "With the E-Customs Payment Solution, J.P. Morgan’s clients in China will only be required to send the payment instructions with linked customs declaration number. Using Application Programming Interface (API) technology, J.P. Morgan’s E-Customs Payment Solution will then retrieve the relevant customs declaration status in detail from the local authorities via the Shanghai International Trade Single Window in real time and process the payments automatically."

Winston & Strawn hired Christopher Monahan, previously with Crowell & Moring, as a partner, Winston said in a June 24 news release. Monahan "counsels clients across a broad scope of industries regarding compliance with the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), the sanctions programs administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), and on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA)," the firm said.

In the June 24 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

The European Union on June 24 published new regulations on technical requirements for its upgraded and upcoming electronic import and export filing systems. The notice outlines requirements for the EU and its member states on electronic systems required by the Union Customs Code, including the Customs Decisions system (CDS), Uniform User Management and Digital Signature (UUM&DS) system, European Binding Tariff Information (EBTI) system, Economic Operator Registration and Identification (EORI) system and Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) system. Areas covered include data access and exchange, as well as the scope of what each system should be used for. The EU recently delayed implementation of many electronic capabilities until 2022-25 (See 1904250056).

Thailand announced a 90-day ban on pig imports from Laos after Laos confirmed it is dealing with an outbreak of African swine fever, according to a June 22 report by Reuters, which cited an official Thailand government agency notice from June 21. The ban covers live pigs and pig carcasses, and follows a recent decision by China to also ban pigs from Laos, Reuters reported.

Bangladesh will soon require submission of the Import General Manifest (IGM) before a Bangladesh-bound vessel’s “departure from last port of call,” according to a June 24 alert from Hapag-Lloyd. If the documentation is not complete, containers cannot be loaded on the vessel, the alert said. "It will be mandatory to complete the documentation process incorporating mandatory elements prior submission of IGM. For incomplete documentation, container(s) cannot be loaded on Bangladesh bound vessel departing from last port of call," Hapag-Lloyd said. "Hapag-Lloyd will file IGM 48 hours prior vessel departure from last port of call and forwarders should file 24 hours prior if House BL is relevant." The change, announced by Bangladesh in an April 3 circular, will take effect July 1.

The Fish and Wildlife Service is creating a new exemption for green sea urchins of the species Strongylocentrotus droebachiensi from export licensing requirements, it said in a final rule. The new exemption applies to green sea urchins harvested in U.S. waters or imported for processing under a valid import license, FWS said. It is not available to violators of federal wildlife laws within the last five years, nor will it apply in states that have not submitted information related to conservation and management or that fail to prove they’re engaged in conservation and management, FWS said. The final rule takes effect June 25.

European Union entities are struggling with compliance ambiguity resulting from the U.S.’s reimposition of Iranian sanctions that conflict with EU laws, according to a June 21 report by the Financial Markets Law Committee, a United Kingdom-based legal association.

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is seeking public input on proposed changes to labeling requirements in the Food and Drug Regulations (FDR) and the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR), the agency said in notices in the Canadian Gazette, Part I. Among other things, the SFCR proposal would "provide consumers with clearer information to guide their purchasing decisions, including expanding the scope of foods with a declaration of the foreign state from where the imported food comes from, what the food contains, and for how long the food would be of optimum quality," the agency said. Canada plans to implement the labeling changes through a "phased-in transition," a CFIA news release said.

President Donald Trump and the Department of the Treasury announced new Iran sanctions that target the country’s supreme leader and eight senior military officials, the White House said June 24.