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International Issues Update 2023/30

By August 4, 2023No Comments

ON OUR DESKS

  • Assessing the House and Senate versions of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)
  • Mapping and outreach to international organization contacts
  • Analysis of domestic manufacturing requirements for government tax credits
  • Supporting client APEC engagement

These are just examples of client service. How can we help you? Email any IBC counsellor for assistance or consult our issues list to find the expert you’re looking for.

WIBC DISCUSSIONS

In case you missed it:

  • July 25: American Institute in Taiwan Chair Laura Rosenberger, Priorities for political and economic engagement with Taiwan
  • July 26: Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Manufacturing Heather Evans, Advancing U.S. manufacturing competitiveness

Upcoming events:

  • August 22 (VIRTUAL): Senate Finance Committee Chief International Trade Counsel Sally Laing and Senior International Trade Counsel Virginia Lenahan, Trade priorities in the 118th Congress

REMINDER: Our client portal, WIBC calendar, and other resources are available at redflag.global/washington.

WIBC discussions are open to WIBC members only. Not a member? Contact Alix for membership inquiries.

YOU NEED TO KNOW

China 

U.S. investment into China is facing mounting scrutiny in the Congress ahead of the Biden administration’s forthcoming executive order restricting certain outbound investment in the PRC. Select China Committee Chair Mike Gallagher (R-WI) wrote to President Biden on August 3 urging the President to consider adopting “core principles” limiting U.S. investment into the PRC in the Executive Order. Gallagher’s proposal goes beyond the limited and sectorally-focused EO contemplated by the administration, calling for restrictions on U.S. capital to “organizations connected to the CCP’s genocide, the CCP’s technological rise, and the Chinese military.”

The Select Committee has also launched an investigation into Blackrock and Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI), giving them two weeks to provide lawmakers information on their investments in China and how the firms choose the Chinese companies included in their funds. The committee compared the companies’ funds to those listed on the various sanctions lists including the Uyghur Forced Labor and Prevention Act (UFLPA) Entity List.   Morgan Stanley is facing increased scrutiny from Chinese authorities as well as Chinese authorities raided the firm’s offices in a surprise inspection this week following a downgrading of PRC stocks by the firm.

Other U.S. actions targeting China have continued in advance of the EO. The interagency U.S. Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force (FLETF) published August 1 an updated Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act Strategy to Prevent the Importation of Goods Mined, Produced, or Manufactured with Forced Labor in the People’s Republic of China.  The UFLPA instituted a presumption that any goods sourced from the Xinjiang region of China are the product of forced labor and inadmissible to the United States. FLETF is mandated to update its enforcement strategy, which provides guidance to importers, annually. The updates to the UFLPA Strategy include the addition of two more firms to the UFLPA Entity List, which subjects their products, wherever-made, to a presumption that they were made with forced labor. The report also highlights the FLETF’s intent to seek additional resources needed to combat forced labor and enhance collaboration with NGOs and the private sector on enforcement. 

Meanwhile, Chinese export restrictions on gallium and germanium, key critical minerals for semiconductor chip making, came into effect August 1.  Licensing for exports is expected to take multiple weeks. The granting of licenses and other implementing actions of the measures may indicate how far the country is willing to go in retaliating against U.S. export controls on semiconductors to China. China additionally announced controls on the export of drones, effective September 1. 

These measures are being implemented against the backdrop of a flagging Chinese economy. Chinese policymakers reiterated willingness to support their economy on Friday, with Yuan Da, of the National Development and Reform Commission, stating “our next step of action is to strengthen and improve the real economy.” China has held off on major stimulus but announced an easing of entry visa and domestic residency registration requirements, allowing for expedited foreign business travel and improved inter-China migration by workers. 

Contact: Patrick Sheehy

Quick takes

  • The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) provided its annual report to Congress noting a record number of investment reviews in 2022, with the Treasury Department noting that the reviews are increasingly complex and result in more national security agreements to resolve the risks identified. 
  • The Commerce Department released a 2022 report by the interagency Titanium Sponge Working Group (TSWG) with recommendations for addressing the U.S. dependence on imported titanium sponge.  The TSWG, set up following a Section 232 national security investigation, concluded that eliminating the 15 percent U.S. tariff on titanium sponge could benefit the domestic titanium industry.
  • A deadline imposed by ECOWAS for the overturning of a coup in Niger passed on Friday with no resolution. ECOWAS, a political and economic union of fifteen West African countries, imposed financial and travel sanctions on Niger. Bloc leaders are now considering a military intervention. 
  • Chilean President Gabriel Boric presented new legislation, described as a “fiscal pact”, to raise tax revenues. The action follows the defeat of a similar tax reform in March. Boric hopes to reform enforcement and raise taxes on firms and high-earning individuals to fund social spending.

NOTICES, BILLS & HEARINGS

Federal Register Notices

Newly Introduced Legislation

House

  • H.R.5109 (Gallagher, D-WI) Would impose restrictions on the investment in Chinese companies by tax-exempt entities
  • H.R.5105 (Espaillat, D-NY) Would establish a lending program for Latin America to reaffirm the United States commitment to sustainable and equitable growth and energy security
  • H.R.5081 (Hageman, R-WY) Would prohibit retailers from designating the U.S. as the country of origin of foreign beef
  • H.R.5078 (Feenstra, R-IA) Would strengthen foreign investment oversight in the U.S. agriculture industry
  • H.R.5072 (Banks, R-IN) Would expand U.S. military sales to Taiwan

WHO’S WHO

Arrivals

  • Michael Khoo and David Lim, Lead Attorneys, Justice Department’s Task Force KleptoCapture 
  • Colleen Coffey and Michael Pratt, Finance Co-directors, Joe Biden for President
  • Jessica Porter, Grassroots Fundraising Director, Joe Biden for President
  • Derek Chollet, Undersecretary of Defense for Policy nominee, Department of Defence
  • Ethan Zindler, Climate Counselor, Treasury Department
  • Timothy Betts, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls
  • Joseph Cristofaro, Director of the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Sensors and Aviation Division

Want more scoops on personnel moves? Find the most recent Who’s Who here.

UPCOMING EVENTS

  • ASEAN East Asia Summit Senior Officials’ Meeting(Seattle), August 5
  • APEC High-level Meeting on Health and the Economy (Seattle), August 6
  • U.S. Trade Mission to South Africa, Ghana and Nigeria, August 6-15
  • Anti-Deforestation Summit of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (Belem), August 8-9
  • OPEC Monthly Report, August 10
  • G20 Anti-corruption ministers’ meeting (Kolkata), August 12
  • APEC’s Energy Ministers’ Meeting, August 15-16
  • Zimbabwe general election, August 23
  • Gabon general election, August 26

Looking farther ahead? Find the most recent full international events calendar here.

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