The new Chinese export controls on rare earths and some products made from them are increasingly becoming a massive problem. China cannot keep up with issuing the export licenses that are now required.
We always report on changes to major embargoes or embargo changes with significant relevance for mechanical and plant engineering at short notice. Here is an overview of less relevant embargo changes since January 2025.
The tabular VDMA overview "Country-related embargoes" makes it easy to find out which countries are currently subject to EU embargo measures and what the current status of the embargo texts is.
With effect from May 29, 2025, the EU has largely, but not completely, lifted its sanctions against Syria. This is in response to the change in US policy towards Syria announced by President Trump in Saudi Arabia.
The EU provides consolidated versions of its sanctions regulations. In the case of the Russia sanctions, the consolidated legal texts have now been updated to the 16th sanctions package.
On May 20, 2025, the EU published its 17th package of sanctions against Russia. The measures (5 amending regulations) all come into force on May 21, 2025. Some of the tightened sanctions are also relevant for the mechanical and plant engineering industry.
VDMA Power-to-X for Applications is calling for an EU import strategy for hydrogen and derivatives in order to achieve a resilient, competitive and climate-friendly energy supply.
As an important service, VDMA Armaturen offers member companies regular updates on key industry facts relating to the building and industrial valves industry.
The EU Commission has published the Combined Nomenclature (commodity codes) for the year 2025. There are only a few changes for mechanical engineering.
