US + EU plan USD 1 bn+ Africa rail link for EV minerals: The US is looking to help develop a new railway linking mines in Central Africa with a port on the Atlantic in order to secure minerals necessary for EV production, Bloomberg reports. The proposed “Lobito Corridor” project would involve laying hundreds of miles of rail tracks from Zambia’s Copperbelt to an existing line in Angola.

The details: The trade route will mainly carry key minerals that are crucial for the production of EVs, including metals like copper and cobalt, the outlet adds. A feasibility study for the Lobito Corridor is expected to start by year-end and take six months, and the project itself should be complete within five years, said Helaina Matza, US President Joe Biden’s acting special coordinator for the administration’s Partnership on Global Infrastructure Investment.

US removes four African countries from zero-tariff trade list over human rights record: The US has removed Uganda, Gabon, the Central African Republic, and Niger from its zero-tariff trade list under its African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) over human rights violations and lack of democratic progress, the Financial Times reports. Agoa, introduced in 2000, aimed to stimulate African exports to the US through preferential trade access for some 1.8k designated goods. The loss of Agoa status for the aforementioned countries will go into effect in January 2024.

EU sanctions could hit EUR 5 bn in trade with Russia:The EU is considering new restrictions that would hit some EUR 5 bn (USD 5.3 bn) in trade with Russia in an effort to curtail the latter’s ability to continue waging its war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reports. The new measures would include export restrictions on welding machines, chemicals, and other technologies used for military purposes, sources in the know told the outlet. There could also be software license bans and restrictions on imports on some processed metals and aluminum products, construction items, transport-related goods, and diamonds, the outlet adds.

Belgian unions are calling on members to refuse to handle Israel-bound munitions, as “various airports in Belgium are seeing arms shipments in the direction of the war zone,” according to a statement (pdf) circulating on social media. “We, several unions active in ground logistics, call on our members not to handle any flights that ship military equipment to Palestine/Israel, like there were clear agreements and rules at the start of the conflict with Russia and Ukraine,” the unions said.

ALSO WORTH KNOWING-

  • Japanese shipowner Mitsui OSK Lines and Singaporean maritime electrification technology startup Pyxis Maritime have signed an MoU to develop the electric vessel market in Singapore and Japan. (Splash)
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