The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is seeking public comments on how well China is fulfilling its commitments to the World Trade Organization. There will be no public hearing due to COVID-19, but the interagency Trade Policy Staff Committee will facilitate public participation via written questions and written responses. Written comments are due at www.regulations.gov, docket number USTR-2022-0012, by Sept. 28 at 11:59 pm EDT. Government officials will pose written questions to commenters in October, and the original writers will have until Oct. 26 at 11:59 pm EDT to respond.

Vietnam forced an industrial construction company based in Ho Chi Minh City to suspend its import and export operations due to failure to pay taxes worth nearly $12 million, the state-run CustomsNews reported Aug. 24. The company, Industrial Construction, has failed to pay its taxes for over three months past its deadline -- a move CustomsNews said was deliberate. City tax authorities "urged local customs units" to suspend the company's import-export abilities. The decision will be dropped once the company fully pays its taxes, the report said.

South Korea will impose special support measures for its customs clearance services in the run-up to the Sept. 9-12 Chuseok holiday, according to an unofficial translation. The Korea Customs Service said it will provide support Aug. 29-Sept. 12 for expedited customs clearance and the timely shipment of exports for agricultural, livestock and marine products, as well as provide prompt refunds of customs duties. Thirty-four customs offices in South Korea will operate a special customs clearance support team 24 hours a day for this 15-day period.

South Korea held an industry conference Aug. 25 to discuss and coordinate responses to the U.S.’s CHIPS and Science Act, which provides incentives for American semiconductor investments, and the Inflation Reduction Act, which provides tax credits for certain electric vehicles that are assembled in North America, and whose batteries are mostly sourced from allies. South Korea said it hopes to continue to express to the U.S. its “concerns” over certain provisions of the CHIPS law that it said violate World Trade Organization rules. The country is also planning a range of “countermeasures,” including “an early commencement of manufacturing plant construction to move up production timelines” in its EV battery and chip sectors.

China’s Hainan province said it will become the first region to ban sales of gasoline- and diesel-fueled cars, in an effort to combat climate change, the Associated Press reported this week. The province, consisting of islands off the mainland, will instead promote electric vehicles as it seeks to ban the cars by 2030, the report said.

Beijing-based TianTai Law firm this week published an alert on China’s export control laws (see 2204270040 and 2105180023), outlining how the restrictions apply to certain technologies. The alert also covers China’s Unreliable Entity List regulations and includes examples of certain technologies to show how companies should go about applying for export licenses.

Malaysia will soon impose a 10% tax on certain low-value imported goods sold online, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Aug. 24. The tax, which will take effect next year, will be imposed on online goods priced below $112.52 and imported into Malaysia “by vendors based in or outside the country,” the report said.

Japan recently proposed to revise its geographical indication regulations to increase exports of GI-protected processed foods, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service said in a report this week. The proposal would reduce “administrative requirements” for new GI applications and no longer require the applications to “specify natural idiosyncrasies of the product,” the agency said. Japan expects the proposed changes will “encourage Japanese producers of well-known value-added food products to apply for GI protection and will enhance the recognition of Japan’s GI system in overseas markets,” USDA said. The country’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries is accepting public comments on the proposal submitted by Sept. 1.

India this month officially published its requirements for certain imported cherries (see 2201180027), which will expand market access for a range of cherry exporters, including from the U.S., the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service said in a report this week. The requirements specifically grant expanded market access for cherries from three states in the Northwest U.S.: Idaho, Oregon and Washington. India hasn’t yet notified the requirements, which include quarantine protocols, to the World Trade Organization.

China lifted its ban on imports of wool and skins of cloven-hoofed animals from South Africa, according to an Aug. 19 announcement from the General Administration of Customs, per an unofficial translation. Chinese Customs banned the imports following an outbreak of hoof-and-mouth disease.