Signed it! 95% of goods will have zero tariffs... A batch of new foreign trade regulations and trade bans will be implemented in September!

China and Nicaragua officially sign a free trade agreement
Starting from September 1st, temporary export controls will be officially implemented on some drones
Starting from October 1st, China Serbia Customs officially implemented AEO mutual recognition
Complete suspension of imports of Japanese aquatic products
Take measures to prevent the spread of monkeypox epidemic
The State Council amends and abolishes multiple administrative regulations related to international container business and other businesses
Central Banks of China and Mongolia Renew Bilateral Currency Swap Agreement
United States: Guidelines for Increasing the Use of Made in the United States in Infrastructure Projects
EU: The new battery law officially takes effect
EU: Announcement of Implementation Rules for the Transition Phase of Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism
Netherlands: Export controls on lithography machines will take effect from September 1st
Five Eastern European Countries: Extending Ukraine's Agricultural Import Ban to the End of this Year
Vietnam: Proposed subsidy policy for electric vehicles
India: plans to ban exports of rare metals such as lithium beryllium niobium tantalum
India: Prohibition of Sugar Exports Starting from October
Myanmar: Restricting Rice Exports
Thailand: Starting from September, foreign tourists will be subject to entry and exit fees
Brazil: Compliance plan officially takes effect
UAE: Local pharmaceutical manufacturers and importers will be charged
Ghana: Raising Port Fees
Romania: Starting next year, electronic invoices must be used for transactions between enterprises
Somalia: Starting from September 1st, all imported goods must be accompanied by a certificate of conformity
September Customs Applicable Exchange Rate Announcement

Today (August 31st), China and Nicaragua officially signed a free trade agreement. The China Nepal Free Trade Agreement is the 21st free trade agreement signed by China with foreign countries. Nicaragua is China's 28th free trade partner and China's fifth free trade partner in Latin America after Chile, Peru, Costa Rica, and Ecuador.


The person in charge of the International Department of the Ministry of Commerce of China introduced that the text rules of the China Nepal Free Trade Agreement fully reflect high level, modernity, and inclusiveness. For the first time, China has signed a free trade agreement that opens up cross-border trade in services (including financial services) and investment through a negative list.


The final zero tariff products of both China and Nepal account for over 95% of the total tax items. The products that enjoy zero tariff treatment include Chinese made cars (including new energy vehicles), motorcycles, batteries, photovoltaic modules, clothing and textiles, as well as Nigerian made beef, shrimp, coffee, cocoa, etc.

On July 31st, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, together with relevant departments, issued two announcements on drone export controls, implementing export controls on some drone specific engines, important payloads, wireless communication equipment, and civilian anti drone systems, and implementing temporary export controls for some consumer grade drones for a period of two years. At the same time, all other civilian drones not included in the controls are prohibited from being exported for military purposes. The above policy will be officially implemented from September 1st.

On February 4, 2021, the Chinese government and the Serbian government officially signed the "Agreement between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Serbia on the Mutual Recognition of the Enterprise Credit Management System of the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China and the" Certified Operators "System of the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Serbia" (hereinafter referred to as the "Mutual Recognition Agreement"), which was decided to be officially implemented from October 1, 2023. According to the Mutual Recognition Agreement, both China and Serbia mutually recognize each other's "certified operators" (AEOs) of customs, providing customs clearance convenience for goods imported from each other's AEO enterprises.

On August 24th, the General Administration of Customs issued a notice on the comprehensive suspension of imports of Japanese aquatic products. The announcement points out that in order to comprehensively prevent the radioactive pollution risk caused by the discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan to the sea, protect the health of Chinese consumers, and ensure the safety of imported food, the General Administration of Customs has decided to suspend the import of aquatic products (including edible aquatic animals) originating from Japan from August 24, 2023 (inclusive).

On August 21, the General Administration of Customs issued a notice that in order to prevent the introduction of monkeypox epidemic into China, aircraft, ships, containers, and goods from countries (regions) where monkeypox epidemic occurred that are contaminated or have the possibility of contamination should undergo hygiene treatment according to the prescribed procedures. This announcement is valid for 6 months.

Recently, the Decision of the State Council on Amending and Abolishing Some Administrative Regulations was officially announced. This includes multiple aspects of operating international container ships and international general cargo ship transportation business.

Recently, the People's Bank of China and the Bank of Mongolia renewed their bilateral currency swap agreement, with a swap size of 15 billion RMB/7.25 trillion Mongolian Tugrik and a validity period of 3 years.

On August 17th local time, the European Commission announced the implementation rules for the transitional period of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) to the public. This regulation will take effect from October 1st of this year and will continue until the end of 2025. This regulation provides a detailed explanation of the obligations of importers of goods under the EU Carbon Border Regulation Mechanism, as well as a transitional method for calculating the amount of greenhouse gas emissions during the production process of these imported goods.

On June 30th, the Dutch government issued new regulations on export controls, including advanced semiconductor chip materials, equipment, and technology, which will take effect on September 1st.

According to Agence France Presse, the agricultural ministers of five EU member states, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, and Bulgaria, held a video conference on the 25th. The attending parties reached a unified position on the ban on importing Ukrainian food. The agricultural ministers of the five countries support extending the ban on importing Ukrainian food into these countries until the end of this year. The above ban will expire on September 15th.

Recently, the Remessa Conform in Brazil has officially come into effect. Specifically, it will have two main impacts on the operation of cross-border sellers: on the positive side, if the seller's platform chooses to join the compliance plan, the seller can enjoy duty-free benefits for cross-border packages below $50, as well as more convenient customs clearance services, providing buyers with a better delivery experience; On the negative side, although imported goods below $50 are exempt from tariffs, sellers are required to pay a 17% ICMS tax (Goods and Services Circulation Tax) in accordance with Brazilian regulations, which increases operating costs. For imported goods worth over $50, sellers are required to pay a 17% ICMS tax in addition to a 60% tariff.

Recently, the UAE Cabinet has issued a resolution stating that the Ministry of Health and Prevention will charge certain fees to drug manufacturers and importers, mainly for operating electronic platforms serving the pharmaceutical industry. According to the resolution, drug importers are required to pay a fee of 0.5% of the unit value of drugs listed on the port list, and local pharmaceutical manufacturers are also required to pay a fee of 0.5% of the unit value of drugs listed on the factory invoice. This resolution will take effect at the end of August.

According to a report by Ghana's "Urban Economy" website on August 4th, due to factors such as currency depreciation and increasing operating costs caused by high inflation rates, the Ghana Port Authority has decided to increase port fees, including various fees such as port fees and customs clearance fees, starting from August 1st after consultation with all relevant parties. The specific rates are still under study.

According to the new regulations in Romania, electronic invoices must be used for inter enterprise transactions starting from January 1, 2024. In B2B transactions, electronic invoices must be issued and uploaded through the national electronic invoice system RO e-Invoice. This measure is valid until December 31, 2026 and may be extended after its expiration. This measure aims to crack down on tax evasion and avoidance, and simplify value-added tax collection procedures.

The Somali Bureau of Standards and Inspection recently announced that starting from September 1st, all goods imported from foreign countries into Somalia must be accompanied by a conformity certificate, otherwise they will be punished. The Somali Ministry of Trade and Industry announced in July this year the promotion of a compliance certification mechanism, requiring individuals and businesses to attach a certificate of conformity when importing goods from foreign countries, in order to ensure that imported goods from Somalia comply with international standards and rules.