The Commerce Department plans to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking for export controls of foundational technologies in the coming weeks, Commerce officials said. The notice will be published “quite soon” and in “weeks, not months,” said Rich Ashooh, Commerce's assistant secretary for export administration, speaking at a June 4 Bureau of Industry and Security Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee meeting. Hillary Hess, director of Commerce’s regulatory policy division, was more reserved in her prediction, saying she is unsure exactly when the notice will be released but assuring the committee it is the next export-related notice that BIS plans to publish. “It is in the process now,” Hess said at the meeting. “We’re trying to prepare it.”

Saudi Arabia announced new excise taxes on e-cigarettes and sweetened drinks, according to a May 28 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Under an amendment to the Excise Tax Agreement of the States of the Gulf Cooperation Council, e-cigarettes and tools will be taxed at 100 percent and sweetened beverages will be taxed at 50 percent, the report said. The changes took effect May 18.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered government agencies to stop additional inspections of imported goods after he said businesses have complained of too many inspections, according to a June 1 report from Capital FM Kenya. Kenyatta told officials at the Kenya Bureau of Standards, Kenya Revenue Authority and the Kenya Ports Authority to reduce inspections on pre-inspected imports unless the goods are “legitimately suspected to be entering the country illegally,” the report said. “I ask them to honor prior inspection done by their appointed agents,” Kenyatta said, according to the report. “Imported goods therefore, should not be subjected to additional inspection at the port of entry except for cases legitimately suspected not to conform to the set standards.”

In the June 3 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:

The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of June 3 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):

Singapore Customs outlined rules of origin requirements and certification procedures under the new ASEAN-Hong Kong Free Trade Agreement that is slated to take effect June 11, in a recent circular. Beginning on that date, preferential treatment for Singapore-originating goods can be claimed under the agreement in Hong Kong, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. AHKFTA treatment is not available in other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member states because they have not yet ratified the agreement, the circular said. The agency also outlined procedures for claiming preferential treatment in a separate circular.

India is adding about 100 electronic licenses, permits, certificates and authorizations from 23 participating government agencies (PGAs) to the eSANCHIT application, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs said in a June 3 circular. The new forms bring the total number of PGAs using eSANCHIT to 27, with only four previously having been set up in eSANCHIT since electronic filing capabilities for the system were launched in April 2018.

All U.S. cargo and air transportation to and from any airport in Venezuela is suspended, effective May 15, the Department of Homeland Security said in a notice. "The Secretary of Homeland Security has determined that conditions in Venezuela threaten the safety and security of passengers, aircraft, and crew, and that the public interest requires an immediate suspension of air transportation," DHS said. The decision involved multiple factors, including the limited access of Transportation Security Administration employees to perform assessments in the airports and "the risk of Maduro regime actions against U.S. citizens and U.S. interests located in Venezuela," DHS said. Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan made the decision, with input from the secretaries of Transportation and State. "If and when the conditions in Venezuela change and if in the public interest, the Secretary of Homeland Security, in coordination with the Secretary of Transportation, will revisit this determination," DHS said.

The United Nations Security Council renewed sanctions against South Sudan for one year, the U.N. said in a May 30 press release. The sanctions keep an arms embargo on South Sudan, restricting member states from selling any arms-related materials to the country and withholding “training, technical and financial assistance related to military activities or materials.”

China opened an investigation into FedEx after it said the shipping company “failed to deliver” packages to certain addresses in China, state-media reported June 1. China suspects FedEx of “undermining the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese clients,” the report said, damaging the rights and interests of FedEx’s clients and violating industry laws.