Trade Barriers/Restrictions

MEXICO CITY—The Mexican government reached an agreement to buy 13 power-generation plants from Spanish electricity company Iberdrola SA for around $6 billion, the latest bid by Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to recover state share of the industry, the government and the company said. Mr. López Obrador, whose government has been in disputes with Iberdrola in recent years, met in Mexico City on Tuesday with…

Beijing has launched its first major counterstrike in its chip war with the U.S. The blow is far from crippling, but U.S. companies in high-tech sectors where European or Asian alternatives exist might increasingly find themselves holding the short end of the stick in China. China said Friday that it has begun a cybersecurity investigation of U.S. memory-chip maker Micron Technology. MU -2.48% That has sparked fears that…

HONG KONG—Eighteen months ago, she was a high-profile symbol of a bigger tech battle between China and the U.S. Now, she is set to take the helm of a Chinese telecommunications company at the leading edge of the country’s push to break free from dependence on America for key technologies. Meng Wanzhou, chief financial officer at Huawei Technologies Co., is set to begin a six-month rotation as company chairwoman after presenting annual results on Friday in Shenzhen, China. Her rising stature…

MOSCOW—The opening months of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year drove an increase in oil and natural-gas prices that brought a windfall for Moscow. Those days are over.As the war continues into its second year and Western sanctions bite harder, Russia’s government revenue is being squeezed and its economy has shifted to a lower-growth trajectory, likely for the long term. The country’s biggest exports, gas and oil, have lost major customers. Government finances are strained. The ruble is down over 20%…

WASHINGTON—The U.S. and Japan reached a trade agreement for minerals used in clean-energy technologies, a deal aimed at allowing Japan to meet sourcing requirements for new electric-vehicle subsidies in the U.S. and shifting energy supply chains away from China.Under the deal, the U.S. and Japan agreed not to levy export duties on critical minerals they trade and coordinate labor standards in producing minerals, among other steps, according to a U.S. announcement. The pact builds on a limited trade accord the two…

Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow—and the flurry of trade, energy and infrastructure deals discussed during his trip—has laid bare an increasingly uncomfortable truth for Moscow: In a relationship the Kremlin has long treated with the utmost caution, China is gaining the upper hand.  “They understand they can’t lose this war, and going deeper into the Chinese pocket is the price they’re willing to pay,” said Alexander Gabuev, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “Beijing is the…

JOHANNESBURG—South Africa’s government said Monday that it is investigating fast-fashion company Shein following complaints from the local textile union and industry association that it may be exploiting tax loopholes to gain an unfair advantage in Africa’s most developed economy. A spokesman for the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition declined to provide details on the investigation, but he said that it was initiated in response to concerns raised by labor and industry…

WASHINGTON—President Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will meet Friday as the U.S. and Europe try to move beyond a spat over subsidies for clean-energy technology and preserve a trans-Atlantic relationship that had strengthened following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.  Since Congress passed the climate and healthcare law called the Inflation Reduction Act last year, European officials have loudly complained about provisions that they fear disadvantage their own…

NEW DELHI—As host to foreign ministers from the Group of 20 nations last week, Narendra Modi played the traditionally neutral role of an Indian prime minister, refusing to take sides between Russia and the U.S.Beneath its professed neutrality, though, India has begun pivoting westward. This has less to do with Russia, where India has longstanding ties, than with China, which both India and the West increasingly see as a principal adversary. This pivot is visible in India’s closer security…

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Commerce Department on Thursday targeted more than two dozen Chinese entities with export restrictions, part of a broader effort by the Biden administration to mitigate what it says is a growing national security threat from China.In adding the 28 Chinese firms and individuals to its Entity List, Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security said the firms represented a range of potential national security risks including through alleged dealings with an Iranian electronics firm previously sanctioned by…