Hundreds of vessels dredged sand in North Korea’s Haeju Bay before illegally exporting it to China, according to a March report from C4ADS, a nonprofit data analysis organization. The operation, which took place in May 2019, violated United Nations Security Council resolutions and demonstrates “a level of sophistication unlike other known cases of North Korean sanctions evasion at sea,” the report said, shedding light on North Korea’s ability to “execute complex operations” to export goods. The sand was dredged by a “large fleet” that sailed from Chinese waters to North Korea, spiking traffic in Automatic Identification System traffic in the waters, the report said. The traffic was unusual because vessels rarely transmit their AIS numbers, in order “to avoid scrutiny from sanctions monitors.” The sand can be used to construct concrete, glass and silicon chips used on electronic devices, the report said.

India recently announced that goods procured from its Special Economic Zones will qualify as fulfilling the country’s “mandatory domestic sourcing requirements,” according to a March 4 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The SEZs normally serve as “export-processing zones” and are deemed overseas territories for purposes of “applying the country’s customs regulations,” the report said. Goods produced in facilities in those zones are normally considered overseas and liable for customs duties. The change means that SEZ goods “actually produced” in India qualify for its domestic sourcing requirements, but goods “containing overseas-manufactured input material” are “specifically excluded.”

The coronavirus outbreak has had “severe” impacts on European Union companies operating in China, according to a Feb. 27 report by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China. The report, which surveyed more than 550 companies, said that almost 90% reported a “medium to high impact” and about half forecasted a double-digit drop in revenue for the first half of 2020. Companies routinely face “unpredictable rules, highly restrictive quarantine demands and extensive pre-conditions to restart operations,” the report said, and often experience “multiple onerous restrictions” while passing through provinces, delaying deliveries. “The patchwork of conflicting rules that emerged from the fight against COVID-19 has produced hundreds of fiefdoms, making it next to impossible to move goods … across China,” Jorg Wuttke, European Chamber president, said in a statement.

Cambodia recently introduced a measure to allow certain value-added taxes on certain food supplies as a “state-charge,” according to a March alert from KPMG. The VATs cover certain meat (including cattle, buffalo, goat, sheep, pork, chicken and ducks), eggs, fresh and saltwater fish, sugar, salt, fish sauce and soy sauce. VATs on those products will be “treated as a state-charge” as of Jan. 1, 2020, until Dec. 31, 2021.

Cambodia is scheduled to lose preferential tariff status on about $1 billion worth of its exports to the European Union on Aug. 12 unless vetoed by the European Parliament or an EU member state, according to a March 2 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The loss of preferential tariffs, provided to Cambodia under the EU’s Everything But Arms program, will impact about 20% of Cambodia’s “preferential tariff entitlement” under the deal, the report said. The Cambodian exports will instead be subject to the EU’s standard Most Favored Nation tariff. The move stems from EU concerns about human rights violations in Cambodia, the HKTDC said.

Applicants for the most recent Chinese tariff exclusion process should expect to spend less time justifying their requests and instead benefit from a less costly and lengthy application process, according to a Feb. 28 report from PricewaterhouseCoopers. China’s announcement last month to accept exemption applications for retaliatory tariffs on nearly 700 U.S. products (see 2002180039), which officially began March 2, reduces the “cost and difficulty” in applying for exclusions compared with previous procedures, the report said. Applicants only need to submit “basic information,” such as Harmonized System codes and planned purchase amounts. Applicants should expect to spend less time justifying their requests with no need to explain the impact of Chinese retaliatory tariffs on their business or whether there is “alternative sourcing in the market, the major impacts of additional tariffs on industries and society, etc.,” PwC said. The report details the requirements applicants must meet, the scope of the products affected and more.

A Singaporean man was fined more than $1.3 million (in Singapore dollars) for avoiding duties on nearly 200 imported vehicles, Singapore Customs said in a March 2 news release. Sunil Kishinchand Bhojwani, manager of Singapore-based T Kishen and Company, negotiated with foreign suppliers to “suppress the values” of the imported vehicles on invoices, the notice said, ultimately avoiding more than $300,000 in import taxes. He also recruited and paid three vehicle traders to submit declarations and apply for duty payment permits on his behalf to avoid detection, the notice said.

Singapore Customs announced improvements to its Trader Notification service, which will now include the total amount of duties payable for “in-payment permits” that traders can use to “verify against the amount of duty” they already paid, according to a March 2 circular. The service also notifies users of changes relating to permit numbers, names of declaring agents, approval dates and whether a permit is approved, canceled or amended.

Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry is conducting “consultations” with small and medium-size Japanese companies impacted by the coronavirus outbreak, according to an unofficial translation of a Feb. 28 notice. The “management consultation” aims to help businesses manage the outbreak’s effect on business.

Vietnamese importers are struggling to import goods from China due to delays in receiving certificates of origin because of the coronavirus outbreak, according to a Feb. 27 report from CustomsNews, the mouthpiece for Vietnam Customs. Chinese suppliers have been unable to submit the certificates within the country’s mandatory time limit, which is causing traders to be unable to prove they qualify for preferential tariff rates, the report said. Normally, Chinese suppliers provide the certificates “a few days” after exporting the goods, the report said, but some certificates have been delayed by weeks. Some importers made declarations in January and have still not received certificate of origin documents to submit to Vietnam Customs, the report said. Vietnamese companies are reportedly asking the country’s customs authority to extend the deadline for additional submissions of certificates of origin to the end of March.