The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of March 5 (some may also be given separate headlines):

Argentina will soon impose new requirements on certain imported LED lamps, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported March 5. The requirements, which include technical and energy efficiency requirements, will apply to lamps used for “general lighting purposes,” with several exceptions, HKTDC said. The country will impose “conformity certification requirements” to show the lamps meet Argentinian standards, which take effect March 5. Importers will have to begin showing proof by July 3 that they began the certification process.

Canadian silver mining company First Majestic Silver Corp. submitted a request for arbitration to the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes on behalf of itself and its Mexican subsidiary, it said March 2. The company said good faith negotiations with the Mexican government broke down, so First Majestic is seeking international arbitration. First Majestic said the Mexican government violated the terms of its Advance Pricing Agreement. The silver company said its grievance is based on Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement during the 2010 to 2014 fiscal years. First Majestic said it instructed Arent Fox, its counsel in Washington, to begin the process under ICSID rules for convening an arbitration tribunal.

Mexico will grant traders a 30-day period to fix certain incorrect labeling information on imports, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service reported Feb. 25. While importers will still have to pay a customs fine if the products have “label errors, omitted information and/or inaccurate data,” importers may now keep the goods at the address declared on the import document and correct the labeling information within 30 days instead of handing the goods to Mexican authorities, USDA said. The policy, announced last month, applies only to imported labeled goods that have “no other grounds for confiscation or retention,” the USDA said, and can be used only with “unintentional” labeling mistakes.

Brazil and Mexico recently made antidumping duty decisions on products from China, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Feb. 26. Brazil determined that China has been dumping certain aluminum plates, sheet and strip, HKTDC said, but has yet to decide whether to apply antidumping duties on those goods. Brazil also renewed an antidumping duty order for five years on certain “float glass” from China with a 2 mm to 19 mm thickness, and updated its schedule to complete an ongoing antidumping sunset review of certain Chinese “pre‑sensitised offset aluminium printing plate.” Brazil is expected to make its final determination April 5. In addition, Mexico began a sunset review of its antidumping duty order on Chinese “pre‑stressed iron and steel products,” HKTDC said. The duty has been in place since 2016 and imposes a fee of US$1.02/kg.

The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of March 1 (some may also be given separate headlines):

The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of Feb. 24 (some may also be given separate headlines):

The government of Canada issued the following trade-related notices as of Feb. 22 (some may also be given separate headlines):

Mexico’s Supreme Court should affirm a draft ruling that would reverse a ban on potato imports from the U.S., the National Potato Council said last week. The ban stems from a lower court ruling siding with a Mexican potato cartel that argued the government has no authority to allow the imports. The high court's draft ruling rejected that argument, saying the government “broadly has the authority to make such a determination” and “acted appropriately,” the NPC said. The Supreme Court is expected to make a final decision Feb. 24. U.S. potato access in Mexico has been one of the NPC’s “highest priorities” for over two decades, the group said. “We are hopeful the majority of justices will agree with this draft ruling and finally allow the Mexican government to live up to its global trade responsibilities,” Jared Balcom, the NPC’s vice president-trade affairs, said in a statement. Despite the trade restrictions, Mexico ranks as the second-largest market for fresh potato exports, the NPC said.

Costa Rica recently issued a trade decree intended to “facilitate the application” of various tariff and trade agreements, a Feb. 19 KPMG post said. Under the decree, traders will soon be able to submit certificates of origin electronically, KPMG said, and Costa Rica’s national customs system won’t require commercial invoices and other trade-related certifications to be authenticated. The decree also includes time frames for traders to correct their certificates of origin, outlines which “mechanisms” are used to request custom duty refunds, and establishes “parameters that customs control documents must satisfy.”