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.

Australia’s customs agency recently reissued a guidance on the “voluntary disclosure of post-importation adjustments,” reminding importers they must disclose any goods-related transfer pricing adjustments “as soon as the importer becomes aware of them,” according to an Oct. 24 post from KPMG. Importers must also disclose certain other payments and costs “not included in the customs value of the goods at the time of importation,” KPMG said, including royalties, license fees, research and development costs, certain commissions, proceeds from selling the goods and “any other goods-related payments.” Under Australia’s “customs self-assessment regime,” importers are required to determine what payments must be included in the customs value, the post said, and non-disclosures are subject to infringement notices and penalties.

South Korea is increasing its imports of Vietnamese agricultural goods in order to balance Vietnam's trade deficit between the two countries, South Korea said in an Oct. 24 press release, according to an unofficial translation. South Korea said it plans to import more Vietnamese tropical fruits to strengthen “Vietnam’s agricultural competitiveness.” South Korea said it “will be able to alleviate trade imbalances in the medium and long term through this.” The press release came after the two countries recently met during the Korea-Vietnam Economic Cooperation Committee in Hanoi, where they discussed trade and economic cooperation.

China recently announced plans for 20 national pilot zones to promote the development and manufacturing of artificial intelligence, according to an Oct. 24 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The pilot zones aim to make China an internationally recognized AI innovation hub, the report said. The sites will be located across the country, including in the “Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area, the Yangtze River Economic Belt, the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Yangtze River Delta,” the report said. China’s plans come as the U.S. Commerce Department considers export controls on emerging technologies -- including artificial intelligence -- to limit China and other countries from gaining access to sensitive technology (see 1910040045).

Indonesia and Australia expect to ratify their signed trade agreement by the end of the year, Indonesia’s trade ministry said Oct. 22, according to an unofficial translation. The agreement will increase export opportunities for Indonesian businesses and covers several non-tariff issues, including rules of origin, customs procedures, technical trade barriers, phytosanitary measures and more, Indonesia said. The deal “is expected to help businesses penetrate the Australian market and develop economic powerhouses so that Indonesian businesses can compete in other third country markets," Indonesia’s director general of national export development said in a statement.

Vietnam is lifting an import ban on pre-owned information technology goods if those goods will be used for scientific research and development or will be re-exported, according to an Oct. 24 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. The items were previously on a 2015 prohibited list but now must be re-exported or destroyed within three months of the completion of research and development, the report said. In cases in which “the imported items are to be used in repairs or export-processing,” the final goods are prohibited from being sold domestically and must be exported.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade will increase checks on several online imports to limit counterfeit and illegally imported goods, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council said in an Oct. 21 report. Vietnam will place more scrutiny on cosmetics, jewelry, nutritional supplements, apparel, footwear and alcohol, the report said, and is expected to begin later this month and continue through 2020. The increased enforcement will include “spot checks” conducted at businesses running e-commerce platforms, the HKTDC said. Businesses that trade in illegal goods or violate intellectual property rights will “face further investigation and possible prosecution,” the report said.

China’s Changsha Customs recently introduced the country’s “two-step declaration” system in an effort to streamline cargo processing and expedite customs clearance, China’s General Administration of Customs said in an Oct. 23 notice, according to an unofficial translation. The system aims to “meet the needs of international trade” by allowing companies to avoid submitting paperwork “at one time,” allowing them to first submit “summary declarations” and later submit a “complete declaration” within two weeks. China plans to implement the two-step system, announced in August (see 1908150031), at 10 customs ports, and has already implemented it at Ningbo Customs (see 1908160016).

China’s Ministry of Commerce recently announced application procedures for sugar and wool import quotas for 2020, according to an Oct. 21 report from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council. Companies must submit applications for China’s “Application and Distribution Procedures for Sugar Import Tariff Quotas” by Oct. 30, the HKTDC said. In the wool and “animal hair” sector, companies will be allocated quotas on a “first come, first served” basis “until all available quotas have been exhausted,” the report said.