The Governor of China's central bank Zhou Xiaochuan stated on October 11, 2010 that China will continue reform of its currency exchange rate to improve its flexibility, but will do so in a gradual way. He added that a steep rise of Chinese currency yuan would cause harm and that managing the currency requires taking into consideration many factors such as domestic inflation, unemployment, gross domestic product growth, balance of payments and other factors.
According to International Monetary Fund officials, the 2010 annual IMF/World Bank meeting did not produce much agreement on currency issues after calls by both institutions to defuse tension over the issue. The only agreement was a commitment to work toward a more balanced pattern of global growth, recognizing the responsibilities of surplus and deficit countries. Some countries, such as South Korea have urged the discussion of exchange rates at the G20 meeting in Seoul on November 11-12, 2010.
The Canada Border Services Agency has issued the Statement of Reasons for its recently initiated investigations into the alleged dumping and subsidizing of certain metal bar grating of carbon, alloy or stainless steel, consisting of load-bearing pieces and cross pieces, produced as standard grating or heavy-duty grating, in panel form, whether galvanized, painted, coated, clad or plated, originating in or exported from China.
Mexico's Diario Oficial of October 7, 2010 lists notices from the Secretary of the Economy as follows:
In the October 8, 2010 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union, the following trade-related notices were posted:
In the October 7, 2010 edition of the Official Journal of the European Union, the following trade-related notices were posted:
The European Commission announced it will work to modernize its Plant Health legislation by 2012 in order to further strengthen and better protect the health of the EU's plants. According to the EC, Europe is particularly vulnerable to pests from other continents and the absence of natural resistance often leads to sharp and irreversible increases in pesticide use. A Question and Answer document on the review of the EU's Plant Health Regime is available here.
The European Commission announced that it has adopted a proposal for a three year suspension of import duties on 27% of Pakistan's current imports to the EU, following unprecedented flooding in that country earlier in the year. The EC will present its proposal to Member States and European Parliament in the coming days and then submit a request for a WTO waiver allowing for the suspension of duties.
On October 6, 2010, the European Union signed a Voluntary Partnership Agreement with Cameroon, the largest African exporter of timber products to the EU. Under the agreement, by July 2012, all shipments of wood products from Cameroon to the EU will be required to carry a license showing that they contain timber and wood products from a legal origin.
The World Customs Organization announced that over 300 customs and business experts representing more than 80 countries met in Turkey for the 2010 World Customs Forum during October 6-7, 2010. On October 7, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Alan Bersin gave the keynote address on "Global Best Practice Round-Up: Making Partnership Work."