The U.S. and exporters led by Risen Energy Co. agreed July 8 to dismiss a case on the 2017 review of the countervailing duty order on solar cells from China (Risen Energy Co. v. U.S., Fed. Cir. # 24-1524). The government appealed the Court of International Trade decision siding with Risen on the agency's land benchmark calculation and use of adverse facts available pertaining to China's Export Buyer's Credit Program (see 2312200026) (Risen Energy Co. v. U.S., CIT Consol. # 20-03912).

The International Trade Commission posted Revision 4 to the 2024 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS adds new 10-digit tariff numbers for a variety of products, including integrated circuits and plantation-harvested teak.

Officials with the 12 GHz for 5G Coalition remain hopeful that FCC action in coming months will allow use of the lower 12 GHz band for fixed-wireless deployments, they said in interviews. In addition, should the FCC act soon, the band could still play a part in some state proposals under the broadband equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program, the officials said. The coalition had hoped for action early in 2024 (see 2312270045).

Sourcemap, an international firm that offers supply chain tracing and mapping services, said its government sources are saying that more companies will be added to the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List before the end of the year -- and that automotive companies and consumer electronics are in the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force's crosshairs.

The Commerce Department wrongly countervailed benefits received by a Turkish rebar exporter under a law the department hadn’t known existed until the exporter noted it in a filing -- while rejecting that filing, said exporter claimed in a June 27 complaint (Kaptan Demir Celik Endustrisi ve Ticaret v. U.S., CIT #24-00096).

The International Trade Commission posted Revision 4 to the 2024 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS adds new 10-digit tariff numbers for a variety of products, including integrated circuits and plantation-harvested teak. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.

While the U.S. and the EU are increasingly aligning their views on China, the two sides still don’t yet fully agree on how to use export controls, investment restrictions and other economic security tools to respond to economic and national security threats posed by Beijing, panelists during a Center for a New American Security event said last week. They also said they expect challenges facing American businesses in China to continue to grow, particularly if the U.S. pursues more trade restrictions and as Beijing builds out its anti-foreign sanctions laws.

Real estate company Colony Ridge Development routinely sends ad or marketing text messages to residential phone numbers listed with the national do not call registry without “the prior express invitation or permission required” by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, alleged a class action Wednesday (docket 4:24-cv-02418) in U.S. District Court for Southern Texas in Houston. Plaintiff Eric Geaslin listed his cellphone number with the national DNC registry in December 2019, yet he received multiple text messages from Colony beginning in late 2022 and continuing through to the present, said the complaint. The Spanish-language text messages advertised properties for sale, but the Plantersville, Texas, resident didn’t recognize the sender, nor does he speak or read Spanish, it said. In light of allegations made by government regulators such as the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, Colony engages in a predatory business model through which it seeks to solicit Hispanic consumers to purchase land or property under unfavorable financial conditions, said the complaint. Geaslin estimates he received at least 20 ad or telemarketing text messages from Colony on his cellphone between 2022 and the present, it said. Geaslin suffered actual harm as a result of the text messages “in that he suffered an invasion of privacy, an intrusion into his life, and a private nuisance,” it said.

The commercial space launch industry should not be sanguine about SpaceX's forthcoming Starship heavy launch rocket's impact on competition, though changes won't be immediate, Arianespace Chief Commercial Officer Steven Rutgers said Tuesday at the Washington Space Business Roundtable. Meanwhile, a notable shakeout in the ranks of new and emerging launch providers is coming, launch executives predicted.

In a June 20 post-oral argument submission, a Turkish rebar exporter said the government is “misrepresenting" its argument by saying the exporter is claiming that any industry in Turkey can receive an industry registry certificate (Kaptan Demir Celik Endustrisi ve Ticaret v. U.S., CIT #23-00131).