Japan imposed antidumping duties on hot-dipped galvanized steel wire from South Korea and China, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced Dec. 2. Following an investigation that began in June 2021, METI and the Ministry of Finance found duties were needed to protect the domestic industry in Japan. The duties range from 9.8% to 41.7%, and are in effect Dec. 8, 2022, to Dec. 7, 2027.

India extended the validity of pre-shipment inspection agencies (PSIAs) as laid out in the Appendix 2G of Appendices and Aayat Niryat Forms (A&ANF), from Dec. 3 to Dec. 31, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade announced.

China recently imposed plant quarantine requirements on imports of certain sweet potatoes from Vietnam and certain fresh bananas from Indonesia, the General Administration of Customs announced, according to an unofficial translation. Exporting banana orchards and packaging plants must be registered with the Agricultural Quarantine Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia and jointly approved by China's customs agency. These orchards should also implement a quality management and traceability system, implement Good Agricultural Practices, maintain hygienic conditions and clean up fallen fruits in a timely manner, China said.

A Chinese invasion of Taiwan, or any other type of “conflict” initiated against the island by Beijing, would have “immediate and dramatically negative effects on China’s ability to import and export goods” and would spur a range of international sanctions, the Center for Strategic and International Studies said in a Nov. 22 report. CSIS said the U.S. and other Western countries would impose strict sanctions and export controls against China, which would “probably persist for months or perhaps years after a conflict, even if U.S. military forces are defeated” in the case of a war.

China recently announced it will waive tariffs on 98% of taxable imports from nine African countries beginning Dec. 1, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported last week. The waived tariffs will apply to certain goods from Benin, Burkina Faso, Guinea, Bissau, Lesotho, Malawi, Sao Tome and Principe, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia, the report said. The measure will apply to 8,786 items, including certain agricultural products and chemicals, and will eventually expand to cover “all least-developed countries which have diplomatic ties with China.”

India's Director General of Foreign Trade in a Nov. 17 notice laid out the quantity of raw/refined sugar to be exported to the EU for 2022-2023 and the quantity to be exported to the U.S. for FY 2023. The DGFT said that 5,841 metric tons of raw/refined sugar can be shipped to the EU under the TRQ for 2022-23 and that 8,606 metric tons raw value of raw cane sugar can shipped to the U.S. under the TRQ from Oct. 1, 2022 to Sept. 30, 2023.

China imposed plant quarantine requirements on fresh Hass avocado imports from Tanzania, the General Administration of Customs announced, according to an unofficial translation. Orchards looking to export avocados to China must be reviewed by Tanzania's Agriculture Ministry and jointly approved by the General Administration of Customs. Exporting orchards should establish good agricultural practices, maintain sanitary conditions in the orchard, clean up fallen fruit in a timely manner and implement integrated pest management, among other things, the notice said.

The G-20 this week said countries should avoid introducing food export restrictions that are inconsistent with World Trade Organization rules and stressed the importance of keeping food supply chains running. In a joint statement after their meetings in Indonesia, leaders of the G-20 nations said they are committed to keeping food supply chains “functioning under challenging circumstances.”

The Hong Kong Trade and Industry Department Nov. 11 issued the latest version of signatures of agency officers authorized to sign and issue Delivery Verification Certificates, and import and export licenses covering strategic commodities.

USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service reminded U.S. exporters last week that Hong Kong won’t accept U.S. poultry and egg imports from counties reporting highly pathogenic avian influenza if the bill of lading is dated on or after the effective date of a ban. Shipments loaded after the ban aren’t allowed to enter Hong Kong “regardless of the date of production,” USDA added. If U.S. exporters ship “ineligible” meat products to Hong Kong in the same container as other meat products, Hong Kong may reject the entire shipment, USDA said. As of Oct. 26, U.S. poultry and egg products from 77 counties in 17 states were still “ineligible” to ship to Hong Kong.