This past week, CTM covered the following issues.

Starting in China, the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress passed significant amendments to China’s Foreign Trade Law, set to enter into force on March 1, 2026, signaling a shift toward active legal deterrence and expanding China’s legal toolbox in preparation for escalating sanctions and countermeasures.

China has overhauled its tariff structure for the new year, lowering tariff rates temporarily for 935 tariff items. 

China's Ministry of Finance announced a plan to adjust value-added tax (VAT) export rebate policies applying to solar and battery products, a move that could cool the price wars and ease trade tensions.

China's Ministry of Commerce concluded its expiry review into trade remedy measures on solar-grade polysilicon from the U.S. and South Korea, extending tariffs first imposed over a decade ago.

Meta's proposed purchase of AI startup company Manus has emerged as an early test case of China's rapidly evolving export control regime and national security laws.

Turning to the U.S., in parallel moves this week, the Trump administration established rules for the authorization of the export sale of certain advanced chips to China, and also set a tariff that serves as an indirect way to collect revenue on those sales.

Congressmen Ritchie Torres (D-NY) and Zach Nunn (R-IA) sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent calling for an immediate national security review of the proposed acquisition of iRobot by a company with ties to China.

At a hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services, Chris Pilkerton, Assistant Secretary for Investment Security at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, responded to questions and comments from members of Congress about both outbound and inbound investment.

In Canada, a visit by Prime Minister Mark Carney to China yielded apparent progress towards resolution of several high-profile trade disputes.

In Europe, the European Commission announced that it was issuing a Guidance Document "on the submission of price undertaking offers in the context of the anti-subsidy duties in place on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) from China," providing a framework for individual companies to negotiate price undertakings which allow them to avoid being subject to the countervailing duties (CVDs) set by the European Commission.

And at the WTO Committee on Anti-Dumping Practices meeting of October 29, 2025, for which the minutes were recently circulated, WTO Members raised concerns about Chinese anti-dumping measures, and China criticized certain anti-dumping measures of other Members as well.