Legislators involved in regulating international trade have certainly been working overtime in the past few years. In the world of Customs Law we have seen:

• The introduction of Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) certification as a response to the heightened threat of international terrorism
• The introduction of Senior Accounting Officer (SAO)provisions holding Financial Directors or other senior accountants personally liable for corporate tax declarations
• The raising of the bar for achieving customs (re) authorisations (such as Customs Simplified Procedures)
• The Modernised Customs Code (although we are still waiting for the Implementing Regulations, the planned changes under the MCC are significant)
• The tightening of Money Laundering Regulations.

The Bribery Act has radically overhauled the UK's existing legislation that has been criticised at international level. In fact, the old legislation was one of the reasons why the UK's score on Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index has dropped from 8.4 to 7.7 (the UK is now ranked 17th).

After one of the most protracted trade disputes in modern history, two agreements were signed that will hopefully put an end to the "banana wars". The Geneva Agreement on Trade in Bananas between the European Union and Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Venezuela and the Agreement on Trade in Bananas between the EU and the USA.

We reported in December that the EU had decided to extend existing anti-dumping duties (ADD) on Chinese and Vietnamese footwear for an additional 15 months. China subsequently initiated WTO dispute proceedings in February by requesting consultations on the matter with the EU but despite months of negotiations the case has now gone to adjudication. Interestingly though, Vietnam has not yet brought proceedings to the WTO but the ADD on Vietnamese imports is lower than its Chinese counterparts.

Following an expiry review, the European Council has adopted Regulation No. 157/2010 imposing a definitive anti-dumping duty on certain ring-binder mechanisms falling within CN Code 8305.10.00 originating from the People’s Republic of China (PRC).