Nepal recently extended an import ban on certain luxury goods and removed restrictions on other items, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Sept. 20. The restrictions, which were set to expire at the end of August (see 2207290010), were extended until Oct 14, covering certain mobile phones, motorcycles, liquor and cars. Nepal also lifted import restrictions on certain toys, snacks, playing cards, diamonds, televisions and tobacco products.

India recently began a new trade clearance process that will subject imports to a “uniform risk‑based assessment system,” the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Sept. 20. The system will seek to standardize the country’s customs examinations and reduce clearance costs and times, the report said, adding that imported goods will “no longer all be required to undergo a full physical examination.” The system will be rolled out in stages for various imports. The first phase, which took effect this month, applies to imported metals.

Kazakhstan recently ended its export restrictions on wheat and wheat flour, USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service said in a recent report. The restrictions had been in place since April (see 2204290010) and extended through Sept. 30 (see 2206270011), the agency said, but the government ended the restrictions this month due to “initial reports of a good fall grain harvest.” Kazakhstani exporters had used 83% of the wheat and 66% of the wheat flour export quotas.

China imposed inspection and quarantine requirements on imports of wild aquatic products from Papua New Guinea, the General Administration of Customs said in a Sept. 19 notice, according to an unofficial translation. In particular, the requirements apply to aquatic animal products, algae and other marine plant products. China now requires exporters to be approved by Papua New Guinea's Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources. Shipments should be legally fished in domestic or international waters, and the raw materials should not be infected with any aquatic animal disease, or be connected with a major food safety incident or any major public health event in the export production enterprise.

China imposed sanctions on two individuals: Raytheon Technologies CEO Gregory Hayes and Theodore Colbert, president-CEO of Boeing Defense, Space & Security. The move comes as a response to the U.S.'s planned $1.1 billion arms sale to Taiwan, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in response to a reporter's question during a regularly scheduled Sept. 16b press conference in Beijing, according to a transcript provided in English. The spokesperson said China condemns the sale and that it gravely undermines China's sovereignty and security.

India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade has permitted the import of PET flakes (made from recyclable plastic bottles) as long as the importer receives authorization from the DGFT and a no objection certificate from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the DGFT said in a Sept. 14 notice. The DGFT said imports are prohibited unless the following conditions are met: a unit is eligible for import only if it has used domestic waste to the extent at least 70% of the capacity in the previous year, the imports for the 2022-2023 year should be restricted to 20% of the production in 2021-2022 and 15% of the actual capacity used in the preceding year thereafter, an additional import up to 10% may be considered against exports of the product, and units would be eligible for import after at least one year of production.

Vietnam's Dinh Ba Customs Branch will prosecute an individual charged with illegally transporting currency across the border from Cambodia to Vietnam, the state-run CustomsNews reported Sept. 15. The case was transferred to the Investigation Policy Agency of the Tan Hong district policy to continue the investigation per the country's regulations, the report said. The defendant, Trinh Linh Em, was stopped at the Dinh Ba international border gate, where border agents found piles of money that the man said amounted to nearly $14,000, from cockfights in Cambodia. The Dinh Ba Customs Branch said Linh Em brought the money into the country without declaring it.

Singapore Customs seized a vehicle at the Woodlands Checkpoint, the customs agency announced. The vehicle is a blue Mitsubishi Fuso Super Great truck. Any individual wishing to lay a claim to the seized vehicle can provide written notice to the Director-General of Singapore Customs. If no claim is made, the vehicle will be discarded by Oct.13, the notice said. Singapore Customs didn't say why the vehicle was seized.

Individuals or entities importing cars into Vietnam may now enter unused cars into storage while they await their certificate of quality, technical safety and environmental protection per the importer's request, the state-run CustomsNews reported Sept. 15. The General Department of Vietnam Customs made the change, telling local customs departments to allow auto importers to put their unused cars in storage if the importer's quality inspection application "states the quality inspection site at the port and the registration agency has completed inspection procedures at the port."

Typhoon Muifa made landfall in China on a group of Chinese islands late Sept. 14 and is heading toward Shanghai. In anticipation of the move, ports in Shanghai and Ningbo shuttered operations, China's state-run state broadcaster CCTV reported, according to an unofficial translation. The typhoon came ashore at the Zhoushan archipelago, near Ningbo at around 8:30 p.m. local time, China's National Meterological Center said, the Associated Press reported. Chinese media said that all flights were cancelled at Ningbo airport in Zhejiang and over 11,000 fishing boats returned to port in the area. Latest estimates put Muifa moving through Jiangsu and Shandong provinces after hitting Shanghai.