The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative canceled two public hearings on China's and Russia's compliance with World Trade Organization commitments, the agency announced this week. USTR said it received 22 comments and three requests to participate in the China-focused hearing, which "subsequently were withdrawn," and the agency canceled the meeting as a result. USTR also canceled its Russia-focused hearing after receiving two comments and one request to participate in the hearing, which also was withdrawn. The hearing on China had been scheduled to take place Oct. 4; the meeting on Russia, Oct. 12.
Two semiconductor companies said they have filed for approval from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. for a merger, Squire Patton said in a Sept. 28 blog post. Renesas Electronics Corporation has offered to acquire all outstanding ordinary and American Depositary Shares of Sequans, and "Completion of the Offer is conditioned on the receipt of ‘CFIUS Approval,’” according to a recent SEC filing.
The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network is seeking public comments on two information collections, involving beneficial ownership information reports and the FinCEN Identifier Application. FinCEN recently published a rule to require certain entities to report to the agency information about their beneficial owners, which would help U.S. authorities determine whether sanctioned parties or others are illegally hiding money or property in the U.S. (see 2309280006). Under the rule, parties can apply for a “FinCEN Identifier,” a unique identifying number that entities can submit instead of their identifying information, which can serve as a “data security” tool. Comments are due by Oct. 30.
The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network released a proposed rule this week that could delay the deadline for certain companies to comply with its new beneficial ownership information reporting requirements (see 2308160023). The agency is proposing to delay the deadline only for companies created or registered on or after the rule takes effect Jan. 1. The proposal would extend that filing deadline from “30 days to 90 days for entities created or registered on or after January 1, 2024, and before January 1, 2025, to give those entities additional time to understand the new reporting obligation and collect the necessary information to complete the filing,” FinCEN said. Entities created or registered on or after Jan. 1, 2025, would have 30 days to file their reports with FinCEN. Comments are due by Oct. 30.
Investors in the American energy and biotechnology sectors should be paying close attention to investment review risks based on remarks made by officials during the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. conference earlier this month (see 2309150038), Dechert said in a client alert. The firm said the Biden administration’s focus on clean energy “appears to be an increasingly important consideration in CFIUS’ case reviews,” adding that “a number of officials” at the conference stressed the “importance of preserving U.S. leadership in the energy infrastructure space.” The firm said it expects to see “increasing interest” from CFIUS in transactions involving clean energy products that could be used to fight climate change, such as batteries, aerial vehicles, hydrogen and other energy alternatives.
The Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. cleared a deal for Denmark-based energy company Orsted A/S to purchase land in Massachusetts from Eversource Energy, a U.S.-based electric services company, Squire Patton said in a September client alert. The CFIUS clearance was announced by the parties earlier this month, making the $625 million deal official. The land will be used for “wind development.”
The State Department approved a potential military sale to Kuwait for $150 million and to Saudi Arabia for $500 million, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Sept. 20. The sale to Kuwait includes repair and recertification services of “Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missiles," and the principal contractor will be Lockheed Martin. The sale to Saudi Arabia includes a "Foreign Military Sales Order (FMSO) II to provide funds for blanket order requisitions under a Cooperative Logistics Supply Support Agreement," and there are no principal contractors involved with this sale.
China again extended its Section 301 retaliatory tariff exclusion period for sorbitol and other non-U.S. agricultural goods, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service said in a September report. The exclusion period was scheduled to expire Sept. 15 but now will remain in effect until April 20, 2024. USDA said this is the sixth time China has extended the exclusion period for sorbitol, adding that the U.S. was the second-largest supplier of sorbitol to China in 2022, with Chinese imports reaching $1.4 million.
The State Department approved a potential $313.4 million military sale to Canada for munitions and “other systems to be integrated into MQ-9Bs,” the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Sept. 15. The principal contractor will be General Atomics Aeronautical Systems.
Taiwan-based carrier Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp. violated the Shipping Act by not providing agreed upon space, charging "extracontractual prices and surcharges” and charging unfair detention and demurrage fees, Bed Bath & Beyond said in a recent complaint to the Federal Maritime Commission. Bed Bath & Beyond is seeking reparations for the "injuries" caused by Yang Ming, telling the FMC that it may have been subject to more than $700,000 in unfair charges.