China and Mauritius signed a trade deal that will eliminate or reduce tariffs on a range of products and increase “economic cooperation,” China’s Ministry of Commerce said in an Oct. 17 press release, according to an unofficial translation. The deal will eliminate certain tariffs, reduce others below 15 percent and will include agreements on rules of origin, trade remedies, technical barriers to trade and "sanitary and phytosanitary issues," China said. The agreement will also expand Chinese exports of steel, tariffs and other “light industrial products” while allowing more sugar imports from Mauritius.
Exports to China
Two stalwart Republican supporters of the president joined with three Democratic senators to say that Congress is united in a push to levy sanctions on Turkey for its invasion of Syria.
Kenya will set up warehouses in Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo to increase exports and fend off competition in its key export markets, according to an Oct. 12 report from The East African. The “elaborate strategy” is expected to smooth challenges that come with “cross-border transportation of goods,” the report said, and give Kenyan companies “easy access” to the Burundi market. Kenya is facing competition from Tanzania, Uganda, China, India and Saudi Arabia for exports to the Rwanda and Burundi markets, the report said.
China will impose “stringent new requirements” on export licenses for automobiles and motorcycles in 2020, according to an Oct. 14 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Manufacturers will be required to provide China with a list of “appointed overseas after-sales repair centres, details of the services provided and general details of their overseas after-sales repair service networks and overseas workshops,” the HKTDC said. Manufacturers of “all-terrain vehicles” will need to submit certain “quality management certificates” and copies of “any relevant international certification relating to the importing jurisdiction,” the report said. The documents will be verified by China’s commerce ministry, which may ban certain manufacturers from exporting autos/motorcycles if they submit false or misleading information, the HKTDC said.
In the Oct. 11-16 editions of the Official Journal of the European Union the following trade-related notices were posted:
It is “impossible” for U.S. exporters to fully comply with Commerce Department restrictions on transfers within China because Chinese courts do not enforce the restrictions, according to an Oct. 13 post by Harris Bricken.
Two bills that could affect trade with Hong Kong and two resolutions criticizing Hong Kong and China passed the House by voice vote on Oct. 15. H.R. 4270, the PROTECT Hong Kong Act, would ban the export of tear gas, rubber bullets and pepper spray to Hong Kong, so that U.S. companies aren't complicit with crackdowns on protestors (see 1909190040). The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, H.R. 3289, requires the State Department to affirm that Hong Kong still deserves its special status in customs and export controls because the one country, two systems agreement for China and Hong Kong is still in force. That bill would also sanction people involved in human rights abuses and the suppression of “basic freedoms” in China and Hong Kong, and would have an annual evaluation of Hong Kong's export control compliance.
A group of 15 southwest regional customs agencies in China signed a memorandum of cooperation to improve customs clearance, “improve supervision and crack down on smuggling,” according to an Oct. 14 report from Xinhua, China’s state-run news agency. The memorandum will support the “New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor construction,” a “trade and logistics passage” built by Singapore and China, the report said.
China said its negotiators were on the same page with the U.S. during trade talks in Washington last week, answering a question during an Oct. 15 press conference from a reporter who asked whether both sides “have the same understanding” of the deal. “What the U.S. side said is true, and it is the same with our understanding on this agreement,” a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said. “This economic and trade agreement will be very important. It will bring benefits to China, the U.S. and the world, and it will contribute to trade and peace.”
The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of Oct. 15 (note that some may also be given separate headlines):