Textile industry representatives questioned the logic of the Section 301 investigation on Nicaragua's human rights and labor rights violations, arguing that while they deplore the despotism of Nicaragua's leaders, none of the actions burden or restrict U.S. commerce. Rather, if the government were to decide that Nicaragua's violations merited the withdrawal of tariff benefits for its apparel exports, that action is what would burden U.S. commerce.
Trade Law Daily is providing readers with the top 20 stories published in 2024. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference numbers.
The FCC Office of International Affairs in a public notice Monday released circuit capacity data for U.S.-international submarine cables as of Dec. 31, 2023. The data includes capacity information from submarine cable landing licensees and common carriers that owned or leased capacity on a cable in the covered period.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is asking for public comments about how BIS regulations on Chinese-made drones, or Chinese components in drones made elsewhere, should be focused, to mitigate the risk of Chinese sabotage or espionage.
The Commerce Department erred in finding that respondents Heze Huayi Chemical Co. and Juancheng Kangtai Chemical Co. cooperated to the best of their ability despite a failure to produce land-use purchase contracts in the 2021 review of the countervailing duty order on chlorinated isocyanurates from China, petitioners led by Bio-Lab argued (Bio-Lab v. U.S., CIT # 24-00118).
Meta's Edge Cable Holdings hopes to start commercial operation of its planned Orca subsea cable system linking Taiwan and California in Q1 2027, it told the FCC in an application posted Thursday. It said the fiber-optic submarine cable network would connect Toucheng, Taiwan, and Hermosa Beach and Manchester, California. Edge said it would use Orca capacity for Meta affiliates' services or to provide bulk capacity to wholesale and enterprise customers. Edge said Orca will provide facilities-based competition with the existing Faster, New Cross-Pacific, Pacific Light Cable and Trans-Pacific Express systems and the planned Taiwan-Philippines-U.S. cable system under construction. Edge said it hoped for an FCC cable landing license by the end of 2025, which would allow construction activities to keep on schedule.
The State Department approved three possible military sales to Egypt, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said. One sale includes a $30 million “Precision Kill Weapon System” and related equipment, and the principal contractor will be BAE Systems. Another includes $630 million worth of “Hellfire AGM-114R Missiles”; the principal contractor, Lockheed Martin. A third sale involves $4.69 billion worth of “Abrams Tank Refurbishment, Support, and Equipment, and related equipment”; the tank contractor, General Dynamics Land Systems.
The Government Wireless Technology & Communications Association (GWTCA) and state groups asked the FCC to delay a requirement that current 4.9 GHz licensees provide it with granular licensing data not later than June 9, or face cancellation of their licenses. Proponents of the delay were optimistic on Monday that the FCC would approve the stay.
SpaceX is asking for the FCC to authorize spectrum access that could support a variety of U.S. space program missions involving its Starship rocket, including lunar landings. In an FCC Space Bureau filing posted Thursday, SpaceX said the Starship missions will include a long-duration orbital flight test, a propellant transfer flight test in orbit, an uncrewed lunar landing test and refueling operations in orbit, and a pair of lunar landings that include refueling operations in Earth orbit. As part of its application, SpaceX asked for FCC OK to operate in some spectrum bands on a nonconforming basis, such as space-to-space communications in the Ku band between Starship and SpaceX’s Starlink satellite system, and lunar surface communications in the 5.8 GHz band for close-range communications during extravehicular activities.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control updated its online landing page for licenses to improve the “user experience,” published a new guide on checking the status of specific license applications and issued a set of best practices on applying for a license. The best practices guidance includes a checklist of do’s and don’t’s that applicants should follow when preparing an application and awaiting a decision.