The GAO (General Accountability Office) just came out with a new report calling for increases to the FDA's authority over imported food items in our supply chains.

What are your corporate strategies during the recession and afterwards? According to ABC News, large retailers, such as Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour, it is to merge into the Indian market...but for what price?

According to today's Financial Times, Boeing is urging Congress to pass languishing free trade agreements with Colombia and South Korea.

According to this Defense News article, the Obama administration will propose splitting US export enforcement authorities among various federal entities. They don't think administrative and criminal enforcement should be housed under one agency, as it is today. Instead, administrative issues will be handled by one "enforcement coordination agency," while criminal issues will be handled by another agency (possibly several). As you are probably aware, one of the Obama administration's goals is to overhaul current US export control regulations to make US companies more competitive in world trade. Eric Hirschhorn, undersecretary of commerce for industry and security, says the general consensus in Washington is that current export control laws are "too complicated, too redundant, and protect too much."

American Shipper magazine, in cooperation with IHS Global Insight, has made available for free on their website a report on ocean transportation projections and analysis. This report takes a look at international containerized ocean freight volumes, factors driving growth, obstacles to growth, and key industry trends.

On My 6, China, Japan and South Korea kicked off a joint research project that focuses on setting up a free trade area (FTA) among the three nations. The first round of meetings took place in South Korea. The three nations will make efforts to complete the joint research ahead of the trilateral leaders' meeting of the three countries in 2012.

The ARC Advisory Group recently released a study that discussed the current state of the Transportation Management System (TMS) market. According to this study, the TMS market has prevailed despite current economic conditions, due largely in part to the increasing popularity of software-as-a-service (SaaS) models. In fact, the sale of TMS solutions in traditional software models has decreased drastically over the years.

According to World Trade\INTERACTIVE, the World Trade Organization has been notified of several proposed regulatory changes that may affect US exports of the following products:

What You Don't Know CAN Hurt You

Export Control Basics for Brokers, Forwarders and 3PLs

Sandler, Travis & Rosbenberg, P.A. is hosting a webinar that will provide you with an overview of the various agencies in charge of controlling exports from the United States (BIS, OFAC, CBP, etc.). As you are well aware, export enforcement has been stepped up - with increasing penalties for those who don't follow the rules. The webinar will be on June 3, from 1-2 pm. It will be hosted by Peggy Chaplin Louie, who assists clients with both import and export regulation compliance and international shipping issues. Follow this link to register. (The cost is $75, but I think it's well worth it.)

Are you interested in learning about the best practices of firms qualifying product for NAFTA and other Free Trade Agreements?

Are you interested in learning about the best practices of firms qualifying product for NAFTA and other Free Trade Agreements?

The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Balli Aviation Ltd., a subsidiary of the UK-based Balli Group PLC, plead guilty to illegally exporting commercial Boeing 747 aircraft from the U.S. to Iran. The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia sentenced the company to pay a $2 million fine. They will also serve a five-year corporate period of probation.

1. OFAC Sanctions has added 3 RPL records.

The Justice Department reports that Miami resident Guillermo Sanchez, 55, pleaded guilty to charges that he conspired to defraud the Export-Import Bank of the United States of approximately $854,000. Sanchez falsely acted as an exporter of construction equipment to South America in 10 different loan transactions.

The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission will hold an open public hearing on June 9, 2010. Taking place in Washington, DC, the hearing (entitled "Evaluating China's Role in the World Trade Organization over the Past Decade") will examine the economic, political and security implications of China's entry into the WTO and its compliance with WTO rules.

Management Dynamics will be exhibiting at ICPA’s First Annual European Conference, in Amsterdam June 13 – 15. If you have not registered yet, it’s not too late. (We’d love to see you there!)

Conference sessions will include:

• Trade Compliance Implications of Simplified EU Law
• Confronted with an Audit: The Do’s and Don’ts
• Customs Classification –The Latest Developments in EU Law
• The Impact of the AEO Legislation: Lessons Learned from the Pilot Project & Implementations in Other Member States
• Compliance with EU Sanctions
• Export Control Fundamentals for Trade Compliance Managers
• Introduction to Customs Valuation and Transfer Pricing
• VAT Implications of Transfer Pricing & Customs Adjustments
• Centralized Clearing
• Rules of Origin
• IT Challenges in Effective Export Control Compliance
• Conducting Effective Internal Audits: Best Practices
• Tariff Engineering: Developments, Issues & Opportunities
• Risk Determination for Export Compliance
• EU Trade Compliance Share Forum: Overview & Proceedings

Management Dynamics, a leading provider of Global Trade Management solutions, has announced a strategic partnership with FTZ Corporation, a leading provider of Foreign-Trade Zone consulting services and developer of the SmartZone Premier application. The partnership seeks to expand the use of foreign-trade zones integrated with core Global Trade Management (GTM) processes of import, export and trade agreement management. Follow this link for more information.

Management Dynamics will be exhibiting at ICPA’s First Annual European Conference, in Amsterdam June 13 – 15. If you have not registered yet, it’s not too late. (We’d love to see you there!)

Conference sessions will include:

• Trade Compliance Implications of Simplified EU Law
• Confronted with an Audit: The Do’s and Don’ts
• Customs Classification –The Latest Developments in EU Law
• The Impact of the AEO Legislation: Lessons Learned from the Pilot Project & Implementations in Other Member States
• Compliance with EU Sanctions
• Export Control Fundamentals for Trade Compliance Managers
• Introduction to Customs Valuation and Transfer Pricing
• VAT Implications of Transfer Pricing & Customs Adjustments
• Centralized Clearing
• Rules of Origin
• IT Challenges in Effective Export Control Compliance
• Conducting Effective Internal Audits: Best Practices
• Tariff Engineering: Developments, Issues & Opportunities
• Risk Determination for Export Compliance
• EU Trade Compliance Share Forum: Overview & Proceedings

Management Dynamics will be exhibiting at ICPA's First Annual European Conference, in Amsterdam June 13 - 15. If you have not registered yet, it's not too late. (We'd love to see you there!)

Foreign Trade Zones have been in use for nearly seventy six years with the passage of the Foreign Trade Zones Act of 1934 to expedite and encourage foreign commerce. Foreign Trade Zones are now a key component of U.S. trade policy and offer companies several opportunities to reduce costs with:

Last year, shippers were faced with increasing rates as carriers recovered from profit loss and limited space on vessels as carriers reduced capacity. The hope was that in 2010, things would pick up. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like that will be the case. As discussed in this opinion piece from Supply Chain Brain, carriers will only be adding capacity if they see significant market growth (which hasn't happened yet). Delayed shipments can also be expected, as carriers make service changes to conserve fuel (the on-time deliver rate in 2009 was only 55%!)

Alliance will Integrate and Expand the Use of Foreign Trade Zones in Global Trade Management

Management Dynamics and FTZ Corporation Announce Strategic Partnership
Alliance will Integrate and Expand the Use of Foreign Trade Zones in Global Trade Management

The United States has added long descriptions to certain HTS which currently have short descriptions. In addition, it adds 3 new HTS for chapter 98. The following HTS chapters are affected: 03, 07, 08, 24, 32, 39, 72, 73, 85 and 98.

Inbound Logistics honors Management Dynamics with its seventh Top 100 Logistics It Providers award. Management Dynamics was selected because its solution offerings solve specific logistics challenges and improve processes, and create a ripple effect of efficiencies across the entire value chain.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service has announced the signing of a procedural agreement with Mexico's National Service of Health, Food Safety, and Agro-Alimentary Quality (SENASICA). The agreement focuses on matters of equivalence and audit procedures, as well as the listing and delisting of eligible establishments for the export of meat, poultry and eggs.

2010 Direct Import Survey:

CSAV is pleased to announce the new American Express Service (AMEX). The first sailing is scheduled for May 16, 2010. Port rotation will include the following locations: Ningbo, Shanghai, Qingdao, Xingang, Busan, Kingston, Port Everglades, Port Elizabeth, Charleston, Caucedo, and Cartagena.