The Chinese telecommunications group ZTE has agreed to additional penalties and compliance measures to replace the United States Commerce Department’s denial order imposed as a result of ZTE’s violations of a March 2017 settlement agreement.

Under the new agreement, ZTE must pay $1 billion and place an additional $400 million in escrow before Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) will remove ZTE from the Denied Persons List. These penalties are in addition to the $892 million in penalties ZTE has already paid to the U.S. government under the March 2017 settlement agreement. BIS is the principal agency involved in the implementation and enforcement of export controls for commercial technologies and many military items.

ZTE will also be required to retain a team of special compliance coordinators selected by and answerable to BIS for a period of 10 years. Their function will be to monitor on a real-time basis ZTE’s compliance with U.S. export control laws. ZTE is also required to replace the entire board of directors and senior leadership for both its entities. The new agreement once again imposes a denial order that is suspended for 10 years, which BIS can activate in the event of additional violations during the 10-year period.

U.S. FINDS DUMPING OF IMPORTS OF CITRIC ACID FROM BELGIUM, COLOMBIA AND THAILAND

The U.S. Department of Commerce has announced the affirmative final determinations in the antidumping duty (AD) investigations of imports of citric acid and certain citrate salts from Belgium, Colombia and Thailand, and its negative final determination in the countervailing duty (CVD) investigation of imports of citric acid and certain citrate salts from Thailand.

Commerce determined that exporters from Belgium, Colombia and Thailand have sold citric acid and certain citrate salts in the U.S. at 19.30 percent, 28.48 percent, and 6.47–15.71 percent less than fair value, respectively. Commerce also determined that Thailand is providing countervailable subsidies to its producers of citric acid and certain citrate salts at rates ranging from 0-0.21 percent, which are de minimis; therefore this investigation will be terminated.

In 2017, imports of citric acid and certain citrate salts from Belgium, Colombia and Thailand were valued at an estimated $9.4 million, $17.6 million and $73.2 million, respectively.

NEW SILK ROAD AND INTELLIGENT LOGISTICS DOMINATE THE AGENDA AT TRANSPORT LOGISTIC CHINA 2018

Logistics 4.0 and the new Silk Road were the dominating topics at transport logistic China 2018, which took place in Shanghai May 16-18.

The eighth edition of transport logistic China fair addressed logistics, mobility, IT and supply chain management in Asia. Participants from all over the world presented their products and services as well as official pavilions from Germany, the Czech Republic, Italy, Spain, Latvia, Malaysia and Lithuania.

“The continuous growth of this exhibition reflects the huge demand for cutting-edge technology and innovative solutions in the Chinese logistics market,” said Gerhard Gerritzen, member of the Management Board at Messe München GmbH.

“transport logistic China is an efficient and practical platform for decision-makers to meet face-to-face, communicate and expand business, and at the same time strongly promotes the high-quality development of the logistics industry.”

“I was a bit surprised as there are so many exhibitors,” remarked Feng Xiang, vice president of YTO Express Group Co., Ltd. “We reached a lot of international visitors. This reflects how influential the exhibition is.”

Participants agreed that China is pressing ahead with digitization at top speed. The country is already playing a leading role in this sector and it continues to grow. Intelligent logistics is becoming the core competence of emerging enterprises, in terms of equipment, software, system integration and assistant decision-making.

Meanwhile, China’s mega project of the New Silk Road is expected to attract investments totaling one-trillion euros.

FRACKING: USE CAUTION, SAYS UNCTAD

Hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking,” the divisive method of extracting natural gas from shale formations, should be approached with caution by countries seeking ways to increase access to energy, says a new report on shale gas from the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The report reviews the history of shale gas extraction in the United States and other national examples to assess its suitability with commitments to the Paris Climate agreement in the context of pressing energy needs.

“Climate change means that all countries must, as a matter of strategic urgency, move away from burning fossil fuels, including shale gas,” UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi said.

“But given that energy is needed to end poverty and boost development, countries with potential shale gas resources should understand the pros and cons when they take policy decisions about the short-term energy mix.”

The report, a special issue of UNCTAD’s Commodities at a Glance series, aims to “offer a dispassionate perspective” on shale gas and hydraulic fracturing for policymakers and other stakeholders.

BLOCKCHAIN TO SHAPE NEXT GENERATION HEALTHCARE SUPPLY CHAINS

Blockchain technology will play a key role in supporting supply chain transformation in the healthcare sector by helping to reduce fraud and better manage quality in the manufacturing and distribution of pharmaceutical products, according to leading data and analytics company GlobalData.

Counterfeiting is a significant problem within the pharmaceutical industry, with the World Health Organization estimating the cost to the industry of counterfeit drugs at over $30 billion.

“This isn’t just a financial loss,” said Bonnie Bain, global head of Pharma at GlobalData. “It also reflects the fact that in some markets, notably emerging economies, relying on ineffective medicines represents a risk to public health.

“The challenge of tracking pharmaceutical products from lab to patient is a significant one, with multiple opportunities for external parties to introduce counterfeit products,” she added. “The ability to trace the journey of an individual dose of medicine from the time of manufacture to the time it is administered could have a significant impact on patient safety and could dramatically reduce the financial losses associated with counterfeiting.”