At a Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) event last week that brought together experts from the U.S. and South Korea, Alan Estevez, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security at the U.S. Department of Commerce, discussed several issues related to export controls on semiconductors

A recent media interview with the Australian trade minister and an Australian parliamentary hearing offer some updates on developments in China-Australia trade relations, which have appeared to become less contentious under the new Australian government.

This past week, CTM covered the following issues. In China: * Lower tariffs on imports from certain least developed countries * Import suspensions on certain animal products * Fines on foreign and domestic banks * Local government funding of semiconductors/advanced manufacturing * Semiconductor association pushes back against foreign government export controls In the U.

Yesterday, a bipartisan duo of members of Congress announced that they had introduced legislation that would push back against the labelling of China as a "developing country" in international organizations.

The Chinese government announced that three more African least developed countries (LDCs), Burundi, Ethiopia, and Niger, will benefit from zero tariffs for 98% of tariff lines when exporting to China, starting in March.

A Republican Congressman has introduced legislation that would push the Biden administration to negotiate rules to limit China's use of a certain kind of export subsidy.

In a letter sent last week, U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) wrote to Treasury Secretary and Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) Chair Janet Yellen about concerns with TikTok.