The European Union initiated an antidumping investigation on ceramic tiles from India and Turkey, the European Commission said in a Dec. 13 notice. Specifically, the commission will look into "ceramic flags and paving, hearth or wall tiles; ceramic mosaic cubes and the like, whether or not on a backing; finishing ceramic," following an allegation from the European Ceramic Tile Manufacturers' Association that imports of the subject goods are harming the European industry. The investigation will cover exports from the two countries into the EU for the period July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021.

A host of countries aligned with the European Union's recent sanctions measures concerning the situation in Guinea, cyberattacks against the EU or its member states and Turkey's unauthorized drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean, the European Council said. North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Ukraine and Moldova aligned with the Guinea sanctions regime that extends to Oct. 27, 2022, the council noted Dec. 2.

The United Kingdom extended the countervailing duty on rainbow trout from Turkey from Jan. 30, 2021, to Jan. 30, 2026, the Department for International Trade said in a Nov. 30 notice. The duties apply to "rainbow trout live, fresh, chilled, frozen or smoked whether in the form of whole fish (with heads and gills on), gutted, weighing 1.2kg or less each, or with heads off, gilled or gutted (weighing 1kg or less each), or in the form of fillets (weighing 400g or less each)," with duties varying between 1.5% and 9.5%.

Gerassimos Thomas, director-general for taxation and customs union at the European Commission, said American observers of the carbon border adjustment mechanism are wrong to focus on the lack of a U.S. cap and trade or carbon tax when thinking about how the CBAM will affect U.S. exporters. The main threshold exports to the Euopean Union have to reach is if the goods are made with the same amount or less carbon intensity than EU-produced goods, he said during an online program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, The CBAM will only apply to steel, aluminum, cement, fertilizer and electricity, not to finished products made with these goods.

The European Council extended its sanctions regime on unauthorized drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean for another year, until Nov. 12, 2022, the council said. The measures were enacted to counter Turkey's drilling activities relating to hydrocarbons. The restrictive measures constitute an asset freeze and a travel ban and currently subject two individuals to the restrictions.

The Bureau of Industry and Security added four technology companies in Israel, Russia and Singapore to the Entity List for “acting contrary” to U.S. foreign policy and national security through “malicious cyber activities,” BIS said in a notice released Nov. 3. The companies either operate or supply technologies in the cyberintelligence and information security sectors and will be subject to a license review policy of presumption of denial for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations. No license exceptions will be available for controlled exports to the four companies. The additions are effective Nov. 4.

Forty-five members notified the World Trade Organization's Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices of new antidumping measures they imposed during the first six months of 2021, while 14 reported no new AD duties in this period, the WTO said. Delegates at the committee's Oct. 27 meeting also reviewed notifications of new legislation from Colombia, India and the United Kingdom, while continuing to review legislation from Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Peru, and Saint Kitts and Nevis. The WTO's Anti-Dumping Agreement requires members to submit notifications of all preliminary and final antidumping actions that were taken Jan. 1-June 30. Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the Dominican Republic, the EU, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Russia, South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, Ukraine, the U.K. and the U.S. submitted notifications, the WTO said. Committee Chair Ahmed Al-Sulaiti of Qatar pointed to the updated handbook as a guide for members' notification obligations under the AD agreement. along with technical assistance available through the WTO Secretariat.

The World Trade Organization's Dispute Settlement Body agreed at its Oct. 26 meeting to set up a dispute panel to look into China's antidumping and countervailing duties on Australian wine, the WTO said. China blocked Australia's panel request at the Sept. 27 DSB meeting. China voiced its regret that Australia went back for a second panel request while also saying that it will vigorously defend its legitimate measures in the panel proceedings, the WTO said. China remains confident that its measures are consistent with WTO rules. Canada, Japan, Brazil, the U.S., the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Turkey, Taiwan, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, India, Singapore, Russia, the European Union and Vietnam reserved their third-party rights to participate in the proceedings, the WTO said.

China will no longer issue Generalized System of Preferences certificates of origin for goods exported to European Union member states, the United Kingdom, Canada, Turkey, Ukraine and Liechtenstein beginning Dec. 1, China's General Administration of Customs said in an Oct. 26 announcement, according to an unofficial translation. The move comes since these countries no longer give China preferential tariff treatment under the GSP. China will now only provide non-preferential certificates of origin to interested consignors.

Countries belonging to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development agreed to a ban on export credits for coal-fired electricity projects leading up to the COP26 summit, the European Union said Oct. 22. The goal for the implementation of the project is the end of this month, once all participating countries have finished their internal ratification processes. The European Commission cited its support since January for ending support for coal export credits as a driving force in its support of the new ban, also pointing to its Trade Policy Review proposal that called for an immediate end to export credit support for the entire coal-fired power sector.