China’s Ministry of Commerce recently published a list of antidumping measures that will expire in 2020, according to a Dec. 2 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Antidumping duties on certain polyamide chips from the U.S., Italy, France and Taiwan will expire Oct. 13; duties on adipic acid from South Korea, the European Union and U.S. will expire Nov. 2; and duties on methyl methacrylate from Singapore, Thailand and Japan will expire Dec. 1. Companies may ask China to review the expiration to potentially continue the antidumping duties by submitting an application at least 60 days before they expire, the report said. Companies who ask for the duties to continue must “believe” the expiration of the duties will lead to “injury to the domestic industry.”
Exports to China
China announced sanctions on five U.S. non-government organizations and said U.S. military ships and aircraft will not be allowed to visit Hong Kong, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Dec. 2. The sanctions were in response to the U.S. passage of the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law last week (see 1911290012). The sanctioned organizations include the National Endowment for Democracy, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, the International Republican Institute, Human Rights Watch and Freedom House.
In the Nov. 25 - Dec. 2 editions of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:
Recent editions of Mexico's Diario Oficial list trade-related notices as follows:
President Donald Trump signed bills that could remove Hong Kong from receiving special customs and export controls treatment and restrict exports of rubber bullets, tear gas and other items to the region. The bills (see 1911200036), signed Nov. 27, led to backlash from China, which said the country is prepared to retaliate. “We urge the U.S. to not continue going down the wrong path, or China will take countermeasures, and the U.S. must bear all consequences,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said Nov. 28.
As the European Union prepares revised regulations of its dual-use export controls (see 1906050039), EU industries are “divided” over whether human rights violations should be an “explicit justification” for export controls, according to a briefing of the EU review released Nov. 26. The 11-page briefing, released by the European Parliament, details how the controls would be changed, including impacts on export controls of surveillance technology, a revamp of the EU’s “licensing architecture” and a focus on terrorism and human rights.
Easing tariffs on U.S. pork exports to China would significantly help both the U.S. agricultural economy and the U.S.’s trade deficit with China, the National Pork Producers Council said in a Nov. 26 press release. An analysis by the NPPC and Iowa State University shows U.S. pork sales would generate more than $24 billion in sales over the next 10 years if tariffs on imports to China were eliminated. “Were it not for China’s tariffs that are severely limiting access to American goods and other restrictions, including customs clearance delays, U.S. pork could be an economic powerhouse, creating thousands of new jobs, expanding sales and dramatically slashing our nation’s trade deficit,” Iowa State University economist Dermot Hayes said in a statement.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture released a report on China’s recent decision to allow imports of U.S. poultry products (see 1911140019). The report, released Nov. 25, lists steps exporters need to take to be able to export to China and provides information for how “federally inspected establishments” can apply to become exporters. This includes approval by the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service and China’s General Administration of Customs. All shipments must also include an import permit obtained by the Chinese importer, an “advance electronic notification” sent to China of the shipment, and they may be subject to border clearance and testing by Chinese customs, the report said.
China signed a customs agreement with Seychelles and one with Ethiopia and discussed increasing trade with South Africa during a recent trip to the continent, China’s General Administration of Customs said in a Nov. 21 press release, according to an unofficial translation. China’s agreement with Seychelles includes a “protocol on inspection and quarantine” for marine products exported to China, which “greatly expands the export” of those products to China, the agency said. The two countries also agreed to measures related to anti-smuggling enforcement and measures to promote “trade relations.” China also met with South Africa’s trade minister and agriculture minister, where the two sides discussed plans to increase Chinese citrus and “cooked poultry meat” to South Africa and increase South African exports of beef, pears, avocados and dairy products.
Indian companies are growing increasingly frustrated with restrictive Chinese market access, leading to a more competitive relationship between India and China and a closer Indian alignment with U.S. policies toward China, a trade expert said. However, although India shares U.S. concerns over China, it disagrees with the U.S.’s approach, preferring to engage with countries such as China and Russia diplomatically rather than impose sanctions on them, the expert said.