An upcoming Bureau of Industry and Security rule that’s expected to place new export controls on advanced AI-related chips will “go down as one of the most destructive to ever hit the U.S. technology industry,” major cloud services provider Oracle said this week.
China on Dec. 31 released the 2025 version of its list of dual-use goods and technologies that require specific import or export licenses, according to an unofficial translation of a Ministry of Commerce notice. Each of the items is listed with corresponding Harmonized System codes. The list officially replaced the previous 2024 version on Jan. 1.
The State Department approved a possible $3.64 billion military sale to Japan, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said last week. The sale includes "AIM-120D-3 and AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles" and related equipment; the principal contractor will be RTX Corp.
Indonesia soon will impose a new 12% luxury goods sales tax on imported products intended for “high-end Indonesian consumers,” including certain premium beef, pork, fruit, seafood and specialty rice, USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service said Jan. 2. USDA said those products historically haven’t been subject to any value-added taxes, adding that the new measure is expected to have a “significant impact on [the] above-mentioned U.S. agricultural exports to Indonesia.”
The U.S. government stressed that it plans to continue an ongoing legal battle to enforce the beneficial ownership information reporting requirements in the Corporate Transparency Act, which a federal court paused last month under a nationwide injunction (see 2412270046 and 2412300031)
Israel announced sanctions last week against an organization running a donation campaign that it said is crowdsourcing money to support the terror group Hezbollah. Israel’s Money Laundering and Terror Financing Prohibition Authority said the campaign has raised tens of thousands of dollars through donations from credit cards, bank transfers and PayPal. “The imposition of sanctions is another significant step in the economic struggle against Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations, with the aim of discouraging the public from participating in financing their activities,” the Israeli agency said, according to an unofficial translation. The notice didn’t name the organization.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control last week sanctioned Integrity Technology Group, Inc., a Beijing cybersecurity company that it said has been involved in multiple cyberattacks against U.S. people or companies.
Almost 10 months after announcing he would oppose the proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel Corp. by Japan-based Nippon Steel Corp. (see 2403140049), President Joe Biden issued a formal order Jan. 3 blocking the deal, saying he continues to believe the 124-year-old American steelmaker should remain in domestic hands. Nippon Steel criticized the decision and hinted it will challenge it in court.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is adding 13 companies and research institutes to the Entity List for illegally shipping export controlled items to other Entity Listed firms, supporting China’s military modernization efforts or aiding Pakistan’s ballistic missile program, the agency said in a final rule released last week and effective Jan. 6
Incoming House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill, R-Ark., said Jan. 3 that he plans to consult with the incoming Trump administration before possibly taking action on legislation to restrict U.S. outbound investment in China.