I was under the impression the issue was with international hazardous material regulations (i.e. laws, service-specific regulations, etc.) that have been being updated/changed this year, and China exports. I'm sure I could be mistaken, but I do know for a fact that many international shipping regulations regarding hazardous materials have been updated in 2013, and I would imagine the process for following those regulations has changed in various ways as well.
My Sony's just got through from fasttech, though earlier orders are still stuck at customs, so I think it's loosening up now. This punitive crack-down by the Postal Regulators in Hong Kong, may have lifted now, as I've seen others now coming through without issue. Hope so. We'll see. But you are correct, there was a two month crack down on lithium batteries, causing returns, refunds, certainly delays. Cross our fingers!