New steel duty orders, ITAR revisions and sanctions license changes

Rebar orders: company rates and the September 15 restart

Commerce has now published the orders following USITC’s affirmative final injury determinations. The AD orders cover Bulgaria, Egypt and Vietnam; the CVD orders cover Egypt and Vietnam. Publication is September 18, but the orders tie the resumption of suspension and deposits to the USITC injury publication on September 15, 2026. Rebar antidumping orders Rebar countervailing duty orders

The AD provisional-measures gap covers entries from September 9 through September 14. Do not apply the restarted deposits to that gap simply because the orders were published later. The written scope and exact producer/exporter combinations control; an invoice description of “steel” or a general supplier group name is insufficient. Rebar antidumping orders

Algerian wire rod: 73.33% from September 18

The final affirmative subsidy determination for carbon and alloy steel wire rod from Algeria is accompanied by the CVD order itself. SPA Algerian Qatar Steel and all others receive a 73.33% rate, with deposits and suspension applying to covered entries on or after September 18, 2026. Algeria wire rod CVD order

Commerce explains why this case differs procedurally from the rebar orders: Algeria is not a “Subsidies Agreement country” for this investigation, so an affirmative USITC injury determination is not required for this CVD order. Importers should treat 73.33% as the CVD component and separately determine any other applicable duty obligations. Algeria wire rod CVD order

Two ITAR rules have different effective dates

A final rule effective September 18 removes the Ethiopia policy-of-denial provision, clarifies the Somalia policy, and updates the major non-NATO ally list to include Saudi Arabia and Peru. It also corrects the Canadian exemption provisions in 22 CFR 126.5(b) and (d), removing the DSP-83 requirement there to align with section 123.10. Exporters must still satisfy the substantive conditions of any exemption they use. ITAR country policies and corrections

A separate interim final rule changes U.S. Munitions List Category XX(a) for unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs), effective October 19, 2026, with comments due the same day. For vehicles rated above 3,000 and at or below 8,000 pounds, the revised control combines the stated autonomous endurance or distance threshold with an advanced-navigation criterion. The rule retains a separate control for qualifying vehicles above 8,000 pounds. USML Category XX(a) interim final rule

Removal from this particular USML provision does not mean unrestricted export: another USML provision may apply, and items removed from USML coverage generally become subject to the EAR unless another agency has exclusive jurisdiction. The rule does not amend the permanent-import U.S. Munitions Import List. Classification teams should document the vehicle’s design and capabilities and use the October 19 effective date. USML Category XX(a) interim final rule

Ethiopia program expires; Lukoil license extended

OFAC announced on September 18 that the national emergency under Executive Order 14046, concerning the Ethiopia crisis, had expired. It removed the persons designated under that program from the SDN List and retired the program FAQs. Screen the transaction for other sanctions authorities before releasing a previously blocked relationship. OFAC Ethiopia and Russia actions

Russia-related General License 131J replaces 131I and authorizes specified negotiations and contingent sale contracts concerning Lukoil International GmbH and its covered subsidiaries, plus specified maintenance or wind-down activity, through 12:01 a.m. EDT on October 22, 2026. Performance of a sale contract must expressly depend on separate OFAC authorization. Russia-related General License 131J

The license permits use of covered blocked accounts for its paragraph (b) activity, but bars transfers of funds to any person or account in Russia. It also preserves the other limits in paragraph (d). A permitted negotiation therefore cannot be treated as permission to close a sale or send its proceeds to Russia. Russia-related General License 131J

EU electrical-steel safeguard starts September 25

EU Regulation 2026/2133, published September 18, introduces a provisional safeguard from September 25 for grain-oriented electrical steel and steel laminations/cores. It combines tariff quotas with product-specific price thresholds. Covered cores incorporated in transformers instead face €1,140 per tonne of core, without a quota; the declared weight is the core’s weight. Origin exclusions and developing-country coverage must be checked against Articles 4–5 and Annex III. European supply contracts should identify the product form, core weight and applicable origin treatment. EU Regulation 2026/2133

PVA orders continued; audio-technology investigation opened

Commerce’s September 18 notice formally continues the China and Japan polyvinyl alcohol AD orders after the sunset reviews, effective September 11. CBP is instructed to collect deposits at the rates applicable when the goods enter; the continuation notice does not assign a new uniform percentage. The written scope includes specific chemical and end-use exclusions. China and Japan PVA continuation orders

USITC’s September 18 notice publishes institution of 337-TA-1521 concerning electronic devices with certain audio technologies, including phones and tablets. The institution decision was made September 15 and the notice issued September 16. BoomCloud 360 is the complainant; respondents include Apple, Samsung Electronics, Samsung Electronics America and Google. The proceeding will examine patent-infringement allegations. No exclusion or cease-and-desist order is issued by this institution notice. Audio technologies Section 337 institution

Actions and dated follow-ups

• Steel entries: distinguish September 15 rebar resumption from September 18 Algerian wire-rod commencement. Keep company-specific AD and CVD mappings separate. Rebar antidumping orders Rebar countervailing duty orders Algeria wire rod CVD order
• Historical rebar: isolate AD gap entries and obtain instruction-level confirmation for the CVD notice’s May 12/13 inconsistency. Rebar antidumping orders Rebar countervailing duty orders
• Defense exports: apply the September 18 country-policy amendments where relevant, and prepare UUV classification records for the October 19 rule and comment deadline. ITAR country policies and corrections USML Category XX(a) interim final rule
• Lukoil-related contracts: retain the separate-authorization condition in sale documents and diary the precise October 22 license cutoff. Russia-related General License 131J

Next: audio-case respondents must respond within 20 days after service, so the actual service date determines the deadline. The next substantive event for import admissibility would be a Commission remedy, not institution alone. Audio technologies Section 337 institution

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