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Trade Policy

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Background On 4 March 2024 the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament reached a provisional political agreement on a new Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (the “Regulation”). The Regulation will replace the current Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive 94/62/EC, aiming to reduce packaging waste and introducing a range of sustainability measures including a requirement for all packaging to be recyclable by 2030. The Regulation is an integral part of the European…

The transitional phase of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (“CBAM”) is now underway with the deadline for submitting the first CBAM quarterly reports having already passed on 31 January 2024 (although with an extension until the end of February).* The CBAM requires importers to report the embedded greenhouse gas emissions in carbon-intensive goods (initially aluminium, cement, iron and steel, electricity, fertilisers and hydrogen) and, from the commencement of the operational phase in 2026, purchase “CBAM…

The Department for Business and Trade (“DBT”) announced in a January 2024 Policy Update its intention to propose legislation in Spring 2024 which would indefinitely recognise CE marking for most types of products sold in Great Britain meaning that UKCA marking would never become mandatory for those products.  Note, as a result of the Windsor Framework Agreement, CE marking was to remain mandatory for the Northern Ireland market in any event. The indefinite extension of…

Joint Commitment of Singapore and Malaysia to establish a Special Economic Zone in Johor The signing of a memorandum of understanding on 11 January 2024 between Singapore and Malaysia reaffirms the longstanding ties and joint commitment by both countries to strengthen economic cooperation and the establishment of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JSSEZ) which will be located in the state of Johor. Anticipated Tax, Customs & Trade Benefits While the JSSEZ is still in the…

Indonesian Ministry of Trade (MOT) issued a new MOT Regulation No. 36 of 2023 on Import Policy and Import Arrangement on 11 December 2023 (“MOT Regulation 36”), which will revoke MOT Regulation No. 25 of 2022. MOT Regulation 36 will come into force within 90 days after 11 December, which falls on 10 March 2024. MOT Regulation 36 stipulates that import approval (Persetujuan Impor/PI) applications can only be submitted to the MOT after the regulation…

The first filings under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) must be submitted by importers by 31 January 2024. CBAM is the EU’s landmark tool that seeks to put a fair price on the carbon emitted during the production of carbon intensive goods that enter the EU. It requires importers to report ’embedded emissions’ of certain products and of electricity imported into the EU in order to ensure equivalent carbon pricing for imported and EU…

The Indonesian government is currently trying to tighten the flow of imported goods into Indonesia. As part of that effort, the government aims to further amend Minister of Trade Regulation No. 25 of 2022 on Amendment of Minister of Trade Regulation No. 20 of 2021 on Policy and Arrangements of Import (“MOT Regulation No.25/2022”). The revision involves changing the import trading system for several types of commodities from “post-border” to “border”. The difference between the…

In brief The new EU Deforestation Regulation (2023/1115/EU) will impose due diligence obligations from 30 December 2024 aimed at tackling deforestation and forest degradation. The Regulation will require companies dealing in in-scope products to undertake due diligence into the source of a wide range of commodities, including cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm-oil, rubber, soya and wood, to ensure that they have not been obtained as a result of deforestation. You can access a recording of our recent webinar…

Next to the CBAM implementing regulation adopted by the European Commission on 17 August 2023 regarding the reporting rules applicable during the transitional phase of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) (please find a previous alert by our team here), the European Commission released a set of new CBAM documents in October.  These are in chronological order: Application User Manual – CBAM Declarant Portal on 3 October 2023; New version of the CBAM Communication template…