The U.S. will soon trigger snapback sanctions under the Iran nuclear deal after the United Nations Security Council rejected the U.S.’s attempt to extend the Iranian arms embargo (see 2008170017), Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. Speaking during an Aug. 19 press conference, Pompeo said the U.S. expects the sanctions to be enforced even as other U.N. members question whether the U.S. has the authority to invoke the sanctions (see 2007010030 and 2006090047). “The president has made clear we’re going to do that soon, and we will,” Pompeo said. “We have every expectation that they’ll be enforced just like every other U.N. Security Council resolution that is in place.”

Companies across the world are increasingly struggling to expand their exports due to a rise in trade retaliation, trade experts said. Although exporters can find some stability by diversifying their markets, they should continue to expect unpredictability, particularly as countries react to changing U.S. tariffs. “You have to love riding roller coasters right now as a trade professional,” said Kim Campbell, president of MKMarin Trade Services, a Canadian trade consulting firm. “If you don't have that temperament, I think you're just going to be nothing but frustrated and heartbroken most of the time.”

The Aug. 28 meeting of the World Trade Organization's Dispute Settlement Body in Geneva will include the European Union's arguments that with Airbus launch subsidies resolved, the billions of dollars in tariffs on French wine, Airbus planes, Scottish whisky and other products should be lifted. The U.S. will also weigh in.

A “skinny deal” to be completed before the United Kingdom crashes out of the European Union on Dec. 31 is seen as unlikely, but experts differ slightly on what that means for business. Robert Hardy, commercial director of Oakland Invicta Ltd., and founder of a Brexit-focused customs consultancy, said that even if there was a “soft Brexit,” all that would do is delay the pain, because presumably the deadline would be pushed out to fill in the details. “Customs paperwork exists in all scenarios. Actually, in a no-deal scenario, there’s less paperwork,” he said, because you don't have to account for rules of origin. “There’s more duty, but I don’t pay the duty, I do the paperwork,” he quipped.

China’s Foreign Ministry criticized increased U.S. restrictions on exports to Huawei (see 2008170029), and said it will take “necessary measures to safeguard” Chinese companies. The restrictions violate international trade rules and will “undermine” global supply chains, a spokesperson said during an Aug. 18 news conference. “We urge the U.S. to immediately correct its mistakes, stop slandering China, and stop suppressing Chinese companies,” the spokesperson said, according to an unofficial translation of a transcript of the press conference.

China’s Commerce Ministry began an antidumping investigation into imports of Australian wine in containers holding 2 liters or less, an Aug. 18 notice said, according to an unofficial translation. China said it expects to complete the investigation by Aug. 18, 2021.

An Aug. 20 Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Department of Agriculture and Department of Commerce virtual hearing on import competition in seasonal produce will include testimony from two Florida and three Georgia members of Congress, a representative of the office of a third Florida Congress member, Farm Bureau executives, and vegetable and berry farmers. It will also include trade groups and a company that oppose restrictions on Mexican produce, among them the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, the San Diego Customs Brokers Association, and milk and corn exporters. The hearing is the second of two that were originally scheduled to take place in Florida and Georgia in April.

Flir Systems, a U.S.-based producer of thermal imaging cameras, is being investigated for possible export control violations, the company said in an Aug. 6 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Flir said it voluntarily disclosed the potential violations to the State, Commerce and Justice departments in 2017.

China is increasing imports of U.S. oil ahead of an expected meeting between U.S. and Chinese trade officials to review compliance with the phase one trade deal (see 2008170022), Bloomberg reported Aug. 18. Up to 14 million barrels of U.S oil will be delivered to China next month, the report said, more than twice the volumes set for August. The oil shipments would fill seven “super-class tankers,” the report said. Earlier this month, a Reuters report noted that energy purchases by China were falling far short -- at only 5% of the targeted $25.3 billion in energy products -- of the agreed commitment through the first half of the year (see 2008040023).

Lithuania designated Hezbollah as a terrorist organization and imposed travel restrictions on members and “affiliated persons,” the Lithuania Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Aug. 13. The U.S. State Department applauded the move and asked other European countries to do the same. “We urge other EU member states to stand firm against this terrorist organization, both at the national and EU level, with the objective of preventing [Hezbollah] financers and members from operating on their territory,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Aug. 15.