Japan recently published the first public draft of its sixth strategic energy plan, which could have implications for U.S. exporters as the country looks to severely cut its greenhouse gas emissions, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service said in an Aug. 11 report. The plan calls for a reduction in reliance on petroleum and coal and lists plans to ban new sales of hybrid cars with combustion engines by 2035, USDA said. The country is aiming for cars with an “electric propulsion system” to make up about 20% to 30% of new commercial vehicle sales weighing less than 8 tons. Japan’s Agency of Natural Resources and Energy aims to double the use of renewable energy for electricity generation by 2030, compared to 2019. "ANRE proposes to significantly revise the 2030 energy mix target relative to its prior 2030 target published in 2018," the report said. The plan focuses on solar and wind, rather than biomass, and doesn't set targets for transport biofuels.

The General Department of Vietnam Customs requested the Customs IT and Statistics Department standardize the list of codes and names of all Vietnamese ports to ensure each has only one code under the United Nations trade location codes, or UN LOCODE, CustomsNews, the mouthpiece of Vietnam Customs, said. GDVC also instructed Customs IT to devise a way to test the integrated software of the import data and data on export goods shipped by the sea as proposed by the Hai Phong Customs Department. Once the port codes are standardized, the list will be used across different systems.

The Philippines temporarily extended its sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances for imported meat and poultry from 60 to 90 days, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service reported Aug. 18. The clearances, renewed Aug. 10, were originally issued to mitigate the impacts of “logistical difficulties” and other shipping issues caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. USDA said the Philippines extended the clearances “for meat and poultry issued from August 10 to December 31, 2021.”

KPMG issued an Aug. 17 alert on India’s recently extended export rebate scheme (see 2107280008) for textiles and apparel goods. The alert includes information on how exporters can claim rebates, which goods are covered and more. KPMG said the decision will provide “stability” to India’s garment exporters.

China's top legislative body, the National People's Congress, on Aug. 20 will discuss extending an anti-sanctions law to Hong Kong, local Chinese media outlet TVB News quoted NPC Standing Committee delegate Tam Yiu-chung as saying, Reuters reported. Hong Kong's Chief Executive Carrie Lam said she has no timeline for the implementation of the mainland Chinese law meant to retaliate against foreign sanctions.

The Australian Border Force and the Infocomm Media Development Authority of Singapore successfully ran a blockchain trial to test the interoperability of two digital verification systems, the agencies said Aug. 18. The trial tested the ABF's Intergovernmental Ledger and IMDA's TradeTrust reference implementation and proved that trade documents can be issued and verified digitally across the two platforms, they said. The Australia-Singapore Digital Economy Agreement provided the mandate for the trial, which sought to make cross-border trade simpler between the two countries. The trial demonstrated the Australian system capability in issuing "high integrity digital trade documents" that can be instantly authenticated, provenance traced, and digitally processed, the agencies said. “QR-codes embedded with unique proofs are inserted into digital Certificates of Origin (COO), enabling immediate verification for authenticity and integrity of the document when scanned or machine-read,” they said.

U.S. exports of organic agricultural products to Vietnam doubled last year and could continue to rise, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said in an Aug. 13 report. The “strong development” of Vietnam's health, wellness and organic sectors has in part spurred the increase, USDA said. Those sectors are a “potential growth market” for organic food and beverage products because of the increased numbers of consumers with higher disposable incomes, it said. USDA also said the COVID-19 pandemic has increased demand for “safe products as consumers seek ways to address health concerns.”

India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade added a chapter to its Foreign Trade Policy concerning the guidelines and rates for its new Scheme for Remission of Duties and Taxes and Exported Products, in an Aug. 17 notice. The scheme is meant to refund duties, taxes or levies at the central, state and local level levied on exported goods, including cumulative indirect taxes on production and indirect duties, taxes or levies accrued from the distribution of the exported product. The notice also included a list of ineligible goods under the RoDTEP Scheme, among them exports through transshipment, exports subject to minimum export prices or duties, and deemed exports.

Exports of COVID-19 rapid antigen testing kits from India for July, August and September will be restricted to 1,176 units per month, the country's Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in an Aug. 17 trade notice. Interested exporters are also “requested” to apply for export licenses through the DGFT's ECOM system for export authorizations, but exports above the 1,176-unit threshold must be applied for online from Aug. 20 to Aug. 30. Licenses are valid for six months, the DGFT said. For an application to be considered, an exporter must submit proof of manufacturing, a copy of a purchase order or invoice and an “undertaking duly signed by the authorized signatory in the company letter head to be submitted by the manufacturer certifying that as on date, all domestic commitments/orders have been filled.”

Vietnam's Hai Phong Customs Department launched the prosecution of a case of red sandalwood smuggling, the Customs Enforcement Team said Aug. 13 via the state-run Customs News website. The enforcement team detected a shipment of 297 sandalwood logs on the KMTC Tokyo container ship from Nhava Sheva Port in India that was transshipped across the Hong Kong Port to Vietnam's Dinh Vu Port May 26. The Hai Phong Customs Department initiated the shipper's criminal case July 30, transferring inspection documents and the wood to the Hai Phong Investigation Police Department, the report said.