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☆ U.S. Senate Finance Committee asks GM, Tesla, Toyota about Chinese supply chain
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 22 (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate Finance Committee asked eight major automakers, including General Motors (GM.N), Tesla (TSLA.O), Ford Motor (F.N), and Honda Motor (7267.T), to answer questions about their Chinese supply chains, according to letters made public on Thursday. Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden wrote the chief executives of major automakers inquiring about Chinese supply chain issues, saying "it is vital that automakers scrutinize their relationships with all suppliers linked to Xinjiang." Beijing denies abuses in Xinjiang, but says it had established "vocational training centers" to curb terrorism, separatism and religious radicalism. "Between raw materials mining/processing and auto parts manufacturing, we found that practically every part of the car would require heightened scrutiny to ensure that it was free of Uyghur forced labor," the report said. GM said Thursday it actively monitors its global supply chain and "conducts extensive due diligence, particularly where we identify or are made aware of potential violations of the law, our agreements, or our policies."

☆ Major car companies like Ford, Tesla, and Toyota are at 'high risk' of sourcing parts made by Chinese forced labor, a report finds: 'It's an industry-wide problem'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Jacob Zinkula | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A new report found "massive and expanding" links between major car companies and China's Xinjiang region. A year ago, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act was signed into law, which banned US imports of products made wholly or partly in the Xinjiang region, unless the company could prove they were not using forced labor. "It is not impossible to audit one's supply chain to identify risks"The auto industry's supply chains are "closer to a ball of spaghetti than a linear chain," Simon Croom, professor of supply chain management at the University of San Diego, told Insider. The average automaker may have links to as many as 18,000 suppliers, including their direct suppliers, the suppliers of those suppliers, and so on. Per Croom, while many companies claim to lack full insight into their supply chains, "it is not impossible to audit one's supply chain to identify risks."

☆ UAW calls on automakers to move supply chain out of Xinjiang region
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Police officers patrol in the old city in Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China, May 4, 2021. REUTERS/Thomas PeterWASHINGTON, Dec 6 (Reuters) - The United Auto Workers (UAW) union called on automakers to shift their entire supply chain out of China's Xinjiang region after a new report on Tuesday suggests that nearly every major automaker has significant exposure to products made with forced labor. "The time is now for the auto industry to establish high-road supply chain models outside the Uyghur Region that protect labor and human rights and the environment," said UAW President Ray Curry. "In some cases, Uyghur forced labor is apparent at multiple steps" of parts manufacturing, mining, refining, pre-fabrication and assembly, it added. Curry called on the U.S. government to "devote the necessary resources to allow Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to effectively identify and ban the importation of products made with forced labor."

☆ U.S. Official Warns Against Efforts to Defy Forced-Labor Crackdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

Customs will be closely looking at these supply chains as well, Mr. Silvers said. PREVIEWThe agency, for example, is experimenting with DNA testing technology that could be used on apparel to see if its cotton ultimately can be traced back to Xinjiang, Mr. Silvers said. Despite the toughened requirements under the forced-labor law, the U.S. government is working with businesses to help facilitate legitimate trade, he said. CTPAT membership will now include checks for forced-labor compliance, and companies that participate in the program will get priority treatment, Mr. Silvers said. Mr. Silvers said the U.S. also is working to compile a list of best practices and frequently asked questions to help address concerns from businesses about how enforcement of the forced-labor law will unfold.

☆ Exclusive: U.S. blocks more than 1,000 solar shipments over Chinese slave labor concerns
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Nov 11 (Reuters) - More than 1,000 shipments of solar energy components worth hundreds of millions of dollars have piled up at U.S. ports since June under a new law banning imports from China's Xinjiang region over concerns about slave labor, according to federal customs officials and industry sources. The agency would not reveal the manufacturers or confirm details about the quantity of solar equipment in the shipments, citing federal law that protects confidential trade secrets. But the companies have halted new shipments to the United States over concerns additional cargoes will also be detained, the industry sources said. The sources asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. CBP has previously said that it had detained about 1,700 shipments worth $516.3 million under UFLPA through September but has never before detailed how many of those shipments contained solar equipment.

☆ EU Looks to Follow Tough U.S. Action on Forced Labor
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Beijing has called allegations about the use of forced labor “vicious lies” and said its policies in Xinjiang are intended to counter violent separatism and terrorism. African mining operations, for example, have been implicated in the use of forced labor. Under the proposal, EU member states will designate authorities to enforce the regulation, and their customs authorities will enforce it at the EU’s borders. Goods made without forced labor are going to the U.S., while goods made with forced labor are shipped to the EU, the researchers said. Uniqlo has said it performs due diligence throughout its supply chain and prohibits the use of forced labor.

☆ Forced Labor a ‘Top-Tier’ Compliance Issue, Says U.S. Official
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Richard Vanderford | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Risk & Compliance Journal spoke to Robert Silvers, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security undersecretary who chairs the interagency Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force. He called on companies and their top executives to make examining supply chains a high-level compliance issue to root out goods tainted by forced labor. Mr. Silvers: Compliance professionals—and, indeed, C-suite executives—need to understand that forced labor is now a top-tier compliance issue. Forced labor needs to be one of those pillars as well. Mr. Silvers: Forced labor belongs in the same breath as FCPA.

☆ Piper Sandler upgrades Array Technologies, says solar stock can surge on improved forward outlook
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Solar stock Array Technologies has outperformed this year, and Piper Sandler thinks there's even more upside to come. Analyst Kashy Harrison upgraded Array Technologies to overweight from neutral, saying an improved forward outlook has the firm bullish on the manufacturer of solar tracking systems. Regardless, the analyst expects that Array, which is up 13.6% in 2022, will continue to outperform. Array Technologies rose 3.8% in Monday premarket trading. "We acknowledge near term risks associated with the UFLPA but see the potential for a more pronounced '23 market recovery," Harrison added.

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