India's Kamarajar Port is now listed as a designated port for the import of unshredded metallic scrap and waste, India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in a July 20 notice. Kamarajar is the 18th and most recent port to achieve the designation. The others are Chennai, Cochin, Ennore, Jawaharlal Nehru, Kandla, Mormugao, Mumbai, New Mangalore, Paradip, Tuticorin, Vishakhapatnam, Pipava, Mundra, Kolkata, Krishnapatnam, Kattupalli and Hazira.

Thailand plans to sign a mini free trade deal with Kofu, Japan, to boost trade with the north-central region, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported July 16. The deal, which would be Thailand’s first mini free trade agreement, likely would increase trade in gems and jewelry and could serve as a format for other mini deals between Thailand and regions in China, India and South Korea, HKTDC said.

Singapore Customs in a July 19 notice reminded traders of the proper information to be submitted when applying for an import or export permit. Customs agents should submit the proper eight-digit Harmonised System Code, the correct value of the declared goods in Singapore dollars based on commercial invoices and the description of the goods, including specific descriptions. Other permit fields include the units of quantity and measurement for the respective HS code, proper country of origin information, country of final destination data and preferential indicators.

China's General Administration of Customs banned the import of cattle from Laos after an outbreak of bovine nodular skin disease, it said in a July 15 notice, according to an unofficial translation. Related products, including goods from the unprocessed cattle or products that may still transmit the disease, have also been banned.

China's General Administration of Customs abolished its special customs clearance procedures for imported donated materials to combat COVID-19, it said in a July 15 notice, according to an unofficial translation. The goods will revert to being processed according to "current relevant regulations."

Japan Customs published an updated list July 15 of the issuing authorities for exports' certificate of origin under the Generalized System of Preferences for North Macedonia and Afghanistan. The Economic Chamber of North Macedonia may certify a product's origin for North Macedonia, and the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment may do the same for Afghanistan. Japan's GSP applies reduced tariffs for imports from developing countries.

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry picked 151 projects that qualify under the Program for Promoting Investment in Japan to Strengthen Supply Chains. The program, a July 2 news release said, will provide support for businesses in their plans to build new plants and create new facilities involved in the supply chains of crucial goods as identified by Japan. The program received an initial 280 applications. These projects in total will receive around 209.5 billion yen.

The Philippines recently announced plans to ban most trans fatty-acids by 2023, including TFAs in imported food products, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a July 9 report. The order, which took effect July 6, provides a policy framework to eliminate “industrially-produced” TFAs in the country’s food supply within the next two years and reduce TFA intake “to less than 1% of the recommended total energy intake.” Under the order, the Philippines will ban the production, import and commercial distribution of industrially produced TFAs and processed food products containing TFAs, USDA said.

China's General Administration of Customs will allow the import of poultry meat from Slovenia and dried chili peppers from Rwanda, the agency said in two press releases, according to unofficial translations. The goods will now be subject to special inspection and quarantine requirements upon entering China, which include passing China's national food safety standards.

Although the Myanmar military coup has destabilized the country and damaged the economy (see 2103090005), imports are being cleared and trade is “continuing in some fashion or another,” the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in a July 8 report. U.S. agricultural shipments are entering the country “normally,” although a lack of shipping lines has led to a container shortage. USDA also said the “current unstable security situation,” banking disruptions and a third COVID-19 wave are “but a few of the ongoing obstacles that impedes economic stability.”