Bruneian aquaculture goods entering China are now subject to inspection and quarantine requirements upon entering the country, China's General Administration of Customs said in an Aug. 4 notice, according to an unofficial translation.

Australia will allow imports of certain raw milk cheese from France with new recognized foreign government certificates, Australia’s agricultural agency said Aug. 4. The certificates, which are “consignment specific,” will authorize imports of French Ossau-Iraty and Roquefort cheese, Australia said. The imports must be accompanied by a certificate issued by France’s agricultural ministry, along with other import requirements. Australia said it will allow the imports because it “determined that France’s regulatory requirements for raw milk cheese production provides an equivalent food safety outcome” to Australia’s regulatory requirements.

All Indian exporters with scrips under the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies scheme for shipping bills up to March 31, 2020, should upload their Electronic Bank Realization Certificates in the Directorate General of Foreign Trade's online “portal by their AD banks” by Sept. 15, the agency said in an Aug. 4 notice. Many pre-March 31, 2020, shipping bills with Let Export Orders do not have their corresponding e-BRCs uploaded, prompting the notice from the DGFT.

India recently lowered import duties on lentils, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a July 30 report. The country eliminated its 10% basic duty on lentils for all origins except the U.S., and reduced basic import duties on U.S. lentils from 30% to 10%. India also lowered its Agriculture Infrastructure Development Cess on imported foreign lentils from 20% to 10%. USDA said the “total effective import duty” on U.S. lentils was lowered from 55% to 22%.

China raised export tariffs on certain steel products and canceled export tax rebates for others in a bid to control domestic supply, the country's finance ministry said. The measures, which took effect Aug. 1, will raise export tariffs on ferrochrome from 20% to 40% and tariffs on pig iron from 15% to 20% while eliminating export rebates on 23 types of steel products, Xinhua, China’s state-run news agency, reported July 29. Those 23 steel products include “flat-rolled products of iron or non-alloy steel,” “natural Seamless casing and pipe for gas,” “plated or zinc-coated ordinary steel sheet” and more, a finance ministry document said, according to an unofficial translation.

Former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott will meet with Indian trade officials this month to bolster the two countries' trade relationship, Australia’s trade minister said July 31. The discussions will feature talks with Indian ministers and business leaders “to progress Australia’s ambitious agenda to energise and expand our bilateral trade and investment relationship with India,” the country said.

Singapore banned the export, transshipment and transit of “nitroglycerin, and mixtures containing nitroglycerin and technology required for the production or use of these items,” on July 28. Singapore made the change in line with United Nations Security Council Resolution 2551.

The Philippines recently issued a memorandum reiterating the minimum labeling requirements for imported meat and clarified that imports that don’t comply will be seized and possibly disposed, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a July 29 report. USDA said U.S. exporters are “strongly advised” to work with local importers to ensure expiration dates are included on labels. Other minimum labeling requirements include the country of origin, ingredient list, date of manufacture, and handling and storage instructions.

India recently extended the timeline for complying with new feed and feed materials standards for meat and milk producing animals, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a July 30 report. The new Jan. 1 compliance date applies to industry stakeholders and traders who “encountered difficulties” obtaining certification or licensing during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. USDA stressed that import approvals for any product remain subject to “local rules and regulations as interpreted by Indian officials at the time of product entry.”

India recently extended its export rebate scheme until March 2024, allowing textile traders to continue receiving rebates on central and state taxes for their exports for several years, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported July 27. The maximum rebate rate of 6.05% will apply to apparel exports and an 8.2% rate will apply to “made-ups,” which include home textile products such as bed linens, curtains, pillows and carpets, HKTDC said. The scheme is also expected to benefit input imports because exporters receive a “Duty Credit Scrip to the value of the embedded taxes and levies relating to any exported product,” the report said. The scrip can be used to pay customs duties on imported equipment “or other inputs or traded with other importers.”