China on Sept. 25 added three U.S. companies to its Unreliable Entity List for arms sales to Taiwan and three others to its Export Control List because they “endanger” Chinese national security, the Ministry of Commerce said.

President Donald Trump on Sept. 25 signed an executive order that a White House official said brings "into effect" the U.S.-China agreement that will eventually bring TikTok under the control of American investors (see 2509220010). Trump, speaking to reporters, said he had a "very good talk" with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and "he gave us the go-ahead" to approve the deal. "We have American investors taking it over," Trump said, adding that technology company Oracle will "play a very big role in terms of security, safety and everything else."

Rep. Eugene Vindman, D-Va., and Delegate James Moylan, R-Guam, introduced a bill this month that would require the executive branch to report to Congress annually on China’s semiconductor manufacturing capabilities, including whether U.S. and allied export controls are curbing the development of that equipment.

Officials from the U.K. and Bermuda issued a joint statement this week committing to boost cooperation on sanctions, and the U.K. agreed to provide Bermuda with up to 300,000 pounds, or about $400,000, this year "for new initiatives to enhance Bermudian sanctions capacity and capability."

The U.K. this week sanctioned a British band and its label for counterterrorism reasons after they were found guilty of terrorism-related charges. The country sanctioned the musical group Embers of an Empire and its production company, Rampage Productions, for "promoting and encouraging terrorism via its dissemination of music whose content promotes and encourages terrorism." The U.K. also said they have "made funds available" to parties "involved in terrorism."

The Office of Foreign Assets Control this week sanctioned five people and one entity for helping North Korea's government generate revenue for its weapons and missile programs, including through weapons sales to the Myanmar military.

U.S. export controls on chips are working and should be maintained, not swapped in a trade deal as part of a “grand bargain” between the Trump administration and Beijing (see 2507150013 and 2508010002), said Rush Doshi, former National Security Council official during the Biden administration.

The Federal Maritime Commission is reviewing a federal court decision issued this week that said the FMC’s 2024 demurrage and detention billing rule (see 2402230049) arbitrarily and capriciously exempted motor carriers from being assessed those fees (see 2509230039). "The Commission is reviewing the court's opinion and will take appropriate action going forward," a commission spokesperson said in a Sept. 24 email.

The EU and Indonesia concluded negotiations on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and Investment Protection Agreement, the European Commission announced Sept. 22. The EU said the deals are a "key milestone" in "strengthening trade and investment ties with a major economy" and "creating new export opportunities and more secure supply chains for energy and raw materials."

The European Commission on Sept. 23 imposed antidumping duties on glyoxylic acid from China. The duties, which range from 29.2% to 124.9%, follow an investigation that found that glyoxylic acid from China is harming the EU industry. Glyoxylic acid is primarily used in the "pharmaceutical, food, fertiliser and cosmetics industries," the commission said.