South Korea and New Zealand plan to strengthen economic cooperation, including in trade, South Korea’s foreign affairs ministry said in an Oct. 29 press release, according to an unofficial translation. The announcement came after ministers from the two countries met in South Korea, which also featured talks on sanctions. New Zealand said it is working to “implement [United Nations] sanctions” toward North Korea and both sides agreed to continue implementing measures by the UN Security Council and the Human Rights Council.

Macau, a special administrative region of China, will ease import restrictions on certain Japanese food products, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Oct. 28, according to an unofficial translation. The move will lift restrictions from certain vegetables, fruits and dairy products, Japan said.

Japan will amend its import and export procedures for certain animals and plants after August amendments to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Japan is advising traders to refer to the changes, which will take effect Nov. 26, before “proceeding with import/export procedures,” according to an unofficial translation of an Oct. 29 notice and press release. The notice contains information on how the changes will affect imports and exports of certain plants and animals before the effective date, and which products will be affected.

India’s Ministry of Defense recently issued two open general export licenses for exports of certain parts and components and exports of intra-company transfer of technology. Both licenses authorize exports to Belgium, France, Germany, Japan, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Britain, the U.S., Canada, Italy, Poland and Mexico.

China plans to eliminate restrictions on some foreign investments and hopes to continue addressing the issue in future trade negotiations, Chinese officials said during an Oct. 29 press conference, according to an unofficial translation.

A Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson suggested that the U.S. and the United Nations should remove sanctions from North Korea because they are not solving the problem.

Japan Trade Minister Isshu Sugawara resigned Oct. 25 following allegations that he violated election law, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, according to an unofficial translation. Sugawara’s duties involved filling a “key post” in Japan’s ongoing trade dispute with South Korea (see 1910240032), according to Reuters. Abe asked Hiroshi Kajiyama, a former member of Abe’s Cabinet, to fill the role. Abe hopes to quickly fill the role to avoid “delay in the important administrative and policy-making fields such as industrial policy, trade policy, and energy policy,” he said.

Indonesia’s president instructed officials to increase the country's exports in new and revised trade agreements, the government’s Ministry of Trade said Oct. 25, according to an unofficial translation. Indonesia wants to increase commodity exports that lack “opportunity” in foreign markets, the notice said. "For example, the products we export to the United States, but other countries with similar goods come in better. It means cheaper, deals with tariffs and so on," an Indonesian official said. As part of its plans, Indonesia said it plans to cut regulations that impede exports, the notice said.

India said many traders are “not doing due diligence” while entering Harmonized System codes in bills of entry and shipping bills, and warned that violators will be subject to penalties, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in an Oct. 22 notice. The country said “many importers” are not entering “the correct HS codes at 8 digit level,” creating “avoidable errors in India's import data.” Traders should “indicate the specific HS codes of items at 8 digit [level] where they exist, instead of using the ‘Others’ category in a loose and inaccurate manner,” the notice said.

China recently combined its foreign trade operator and place of origin certificates, shifting customs responsibilities among government agencies, according to an Oct. 25 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The country’s commerce regulators will now be responsible for “record-maintenance, data collection and all relevant notifications,” while customs officers “will receive and input any required records” relating to the certificates, the report said.