Singapore will eliminate its remaining import restrictions on food produced in Japan’s Fukushima region, Japan said Nov. 4, according to an unofficial translation of a Ministry of Foreign Affairs release. Japan said Singapore considered “the safety measures Japan has taken so far,” including the pre-export inspection of food.” The announcement came as Japan implores countries to reduce restrictions created to guard against possible food-related radiation contamination from Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster in 2011 (see 1911010030).
Indonesia issued a guidance clarifying its import duty and value-added tax exemptions for certain imports that fall under certain contracts, KPMG said in a Nov. 1 post. Indonesia clarified that its exemptions apply to imports under “contracts of work” or “coal contracts of work,” the post said, and provide exemptions and reductions of import duties and exemption of import VATs. Indonesia bans any transfers, re-exports or destruction of goods imported under the measures until two years have elapsed from the import date, the post said, and requires importers to first receive approval from Indonesian customs and other agencies. Violations may result in import duties, VATs and further penalties.
Singapore’s TradeNet will be down for maintenance from 4 a.m. to noon Nov. 17, Singapore Customs said in an Oct. 30 notice. Singapore is asking traders not to submit applications during that time period.
China will hold an import fair in Shanghai this week to showcase Chinese companies, trade policies and address criticism of trade restrictions amid U.S.-China trade negotiations. China said more than 190 U.S. businesses will attend, an 18 percent increase from the previous year, even as U.S. officials are opting to skip the event. A U.S. embassy spokesperson said no senior officials plan to attend, according to Reuters.
Japan implored countries to drop restrictions on Japanese food imports from Fukushima, saying the restrictions are hurting its farmers. Several countries, including South Korea, have imposed measures to guard against possible radiation contamination from food imported from Fukushima, which was the site of a nuclear power plant that was damaged by a tsunami in 2011.
Indonesia is preparing safeguard policies for textile imports to protect its domestic textile industry, the country’s Ministry of Trade said Oct. 31, according to an unofficial translation. An Indonesian trade official said the safeguard policies may include both temporary and permanent measures and suggested the country is close to imposing them, saying the Trade Ministry has “finished” deliberations on the measures. The safeguard could be “quite suppressing” for imports to the textile industry, Indonesia said.
India’s government reaffirmed it will only use domestically produced solar cells for solar-energy products, potentially decreasing demand for imported solar cells, according to an Oct. 31 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. While the requirement had previously been in place, HKTDC said, the government’s announcement followed reports that contractors were ignoring the order and were using imported “semi-processed” solar cells “with only minimal processing actually taking place in India.” The move is aimed at boosting domestic production of solar cells “while also insulating the country’s manufacturing sector from being undermined by cheap imports,” the report said.
Foreign e-commerce suppliers selling to Taiwan must issue “cloud government uniform invoices” to their domestic purchasers starting Jan. 1, 2020, KPMG said in an Oct. 29 post. This is following a transition period to the system that started Jan. 1, 2019, and continues through the end of the year. E-commerce suppliers who do not issue the cloud GUIs may face penalties of up to “five times the tax that should have been collected” for violations of the Taiwanese value-added tax laws, the post said. Suppliers can issue cloud GUIs -- or electronic GUIs -- to customers through email, phone and other means approved by Taiwan, KPMG said.
China plans to eliminate restrictions on some foreign investments and hopes to continue addressing the issue in future trade negotiations, Chinese officials said during an Oct. 29 press conference, according to an unofficial translation.
South Korea and New Zealand plan to strengthen economic cooperation, including in trade, South Korea’s foreign affairs ministry said in an Oct. 29 press release, according to an unofficial translation. The announcement came after ministers from the two countries met in South Korea, which also featured talks on sanctions. New Zealand said it is working to “implement [United Nations] sanctions” toward North Korea and both sides agreed to continue implementing measures by the UN Security Council and the Human Rights Council.