All 27 EU member states have either adopted a regime to screen foreign direct investments or have begun official talks to soon put one in place, the European Commission said in its annual report on FDI released last week. The report, which analyzes member state FDI screening activities for 2023, said 24 members so far have a screening tool in place, up from 21 around the same time last year (see 2310200038).

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is likely to react “more negatively and more directly” than his Democratic rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, to the EU’s plan to start taxing carbon-intensive imports, a former U.S. trade official said Oct. 17.

A new U.K. general license authorizes certain transactions with sanctioned parties involving U.K. government debt. The license, issued Oct. 14, allows certain payments "in respect of UK Government Debt where either the legal holder or the direct or indirect recipient or beneficiary of that payment is a UK" sanctioned or "prohibited" party, "provided the payments are held in Frozen Accounts or UK Prohibited Persons Accounts." The license defines "prohibited" parties as people and entities subject to certain sanctions against Russia or Belarus, and it defines "UK Government Debt" to mean "all securities issued by, or on behalf of His Majesty's Government in respect of money borrowed by His Majesty's Government."

Group of 7 officials meeting in Rome last week said they have made progress on semiconductor supply chain issues and stressed the importance of addressing industrial policies that are unfairly propping up certain domestic chip industries.

The EU's Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which could take effect for some companies Dec. 30, may violate World Trade Organization rules and should be modified to ensure it's compliant, according to a new policy brief released by the European Center for International Political Economy (ECIPE).

The U.K. this week renewed a general license that authorizes certain transactions related to humanitarian activities involving Israel, the “occupied Palestinian territories” and Lebanon. The license was scheduled to expire May 14, 2025, but now will expire Nov. 14, 2025. The U.K. also amended the license’s reporting deadlines and added Lebanon to the scope of regions that are authorized by the license; the license previously covered only Israel and the “occupied Palestinian territories.”

The Council of the European Union on Oct. 8 extended the sanctions regime on Nicaragua for another year, until Oct. 15, 2025. The sanctions, which currently cover 21 people and three entities, were originally imposed in 2019 to respond to Nicaragua's "deteriorating political and social situation."

The Council of the European Union on Oct. 8 renewed the sanctions' regime on Sudan and ISIL/Da'esh and al-Qaeda for another year. The sanctions on those undermining the stability of Sudan currently cover six people and six entities and will now run until Oct. 10, 2025. The sanctions on ISIL cover 15 people and six entities and will now apply until Oct. 31, 2025.

The U.K. on Oct. 8 revised its antidumping duties on ceramic tiles from China, revoking the duties for tiles where the largest surface equals or exceeds 0.36 meters squared "unless the differential relief on the largest surface exceeds" 3 millimeters. The U.K. also revoked duties for tiles with an "edge equal to or longer than 600mm, unless the differential relief on the largest surface exceeds 3mm." Another change adds "finishing ceramics" to the description of the covered goods, while "glazed and unglazed" will be removed from the description. The notice also extends the existing duty rates for another five years, until Nov. 24, 2027.

The U.K. on Oct. 7 updated its end-user undertaking form -- which must be completed by all exporters to comply with standard individual export licences and standard individual trade control licences terms and conditions -- to remove references to its outgoing licensing system SPIRE. The country plans to retire SPIRE, or the Shared Primary Information Resource Environment, and replace it with its new digital export licensing system, Licensing for International Trade (LITE), in the coming months (see 2409190037).