InterTradeTalk

The Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued an interim final rule to extend its recordkeeping requirements from 5 to 10 years for certain transactions regarding blocked property and funds transfers., click here.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has delayed the final determination of the Section 301 China Tariff Modifications proposed on May 28, 2024 as it continues to review the more than 1,100 comments it received in response to its proposal. The final determination is now expected to be issued in August 2024 and the modifications will take effect approximately two weeks after the final determination is made public. , click here.

Based upon a complaint filed by the Department of Justice on 04/22/2024, Williams-Sonoma has agreed to a settlement that requires them to pay a record $3.17 Million for repeated violations of a 2020 order by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). The prior order from 2020 required the company to be truthful regarding the origin of its goods and to cease the false advertising of foreign-made products as being “Made in USA.” According to FTC Chair Lina M Kahn, “Williams-Sonoma’s deception misled consumers and harmed honest American businesses. Today’s record-setting civil penalty makes clear that firms committing Made-in-USA fraud will not get a free pass.” , click here.

The U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Commerce, and the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), issued a Tri-Seal Compliance Note: “Obligations of Foreign-based Persons to Comply with U.S. Sanctions and Export Control Laws” today providing guidance regarding the ability of the U.S. government to hold both U.S. and non-U.S. persons and companies accountable for violations of U.S. sanctions and export control laws., click here.

A Pennsylvania-based company was issued a penalty of $153,175.00 from the Bureau of Industry and Security for failing to report 43 requests from its Pakistani customer to not provide Israeli-origin products. While boycott-related requests of Israeli products are usually received from Arab League countries, the Export Administration Regulations prohibiting compliance with, and requiring the reporting of these requests are not limited to any one country or region., click here.