India opened a Helpdesk for resolution of issues related to the rollout of shipping bills, generation of e-scrips and transfer of e-scrips under the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products scheme, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade said Oct. 31. The Helpdesk will be available 24/7 and will allow exporters to lodge a grievance either via voice phone call to 1800-3010-1000 or email at icegatehelpdesk@icegate.gov.in, the DGFT said.

India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade on Oct. 28 extended the restrictions on the export of sugar for another year, until Oct. 31. The restriction covers "Sugar (Raw Sugar, Refined Sugar and Whate Sugar) under HS Codes 1701 14 90 and 1701 99 90" but does not affect exports to the EU and U.S. under CSL and TRQ quota, the DGFT said.

Malaysia recently ratified the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, becoming the ninth country to join the deal, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Oct. 28. Malaysia will benefit from “access to new markets,” HKTDC said, adding that nearly all of the country’s exports to CPTPP countries will be duty-free by Jan. 1.

The Cambodia-Korea Free Trade Agreement (see 2111020018) will officially take effect Dec. 1, removing tariffs on a range of goods traded between the two countries, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Oct. 28. Among the items that will benefit are Cambodian textile and industrial exports and South Korean exports of automobiles, electronics, machinery and food.

Indonesia has recently “stepped up its enforcement” on registrations for importers of “fresh animal products,” USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service said in an Oct. 27 report. Importers should “expedite the registration process for their imported products” to “avoid any trade disruption,” the report said. “The vigorous enforcement adds another trade impediment to the already complicated import process, particularly for beef products.”

China imposed inspection and quarantine requirements on imports of aquatic products from Nicaragua, the General Administration of Customs said Oct. 25, according to an unofficial translation. The requirements apply to cultured aquatic animal goods and their products for human consumption, algae and other marine plant products, excluding the species listed in the appendix of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and China's national priorities. Would-be imports of the subject merchandise must be cultured in Nicaragua's own waters and be free of aquatic animal diseases listed in the "List of Animal Quarantine Diseases of the People's Republic of China," the customs agency said. Exporters may not use drugs or additives barred by both parties.

India recently issued an order requiring certain foreign food manufacturing facilities to register with the country before shipping items, USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service said in an Oct. 24 report. The order applies to food facilities exporting milk, milk products, meat, meat products, egg powder, infant food and nutraceuticals to India. The new requirement will take effect Feb. 1, USDA said.

Samsung and SK Hynix view their one-year waiver from certain U.S. export license requirements (see 2210070049) as a deadline and have begun exploring a “Plan B” if they can’t produce certain chips in China, Nikkei reported Oct. 25. After the South Korean chipmakers received a Bureau of Industry and Security waiver to continue using controlled semiconductor equipment in China (see 2210120002), they also “started a campaign to assess the business risks of their operations in China, as well as to plan for different scenarios,” the report said. "Who knows what will come after one year? It might or might not be extended," a person familiar with Samsung’s situation told Nikkei. "The license can be [denied] so that the company could face a case-by-case review." SK Hynix also told Nikkei it’s unsure what will happen after the one-year period ends.

Vietnam recently imposed temporary antidumping duties on certain Chinese furniture, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Oct. 17. The country imposed AD rates of 21.4% and 35.2%, which will remain in effect for four months from mid-October, on certain chair and table imports from China. Vietnam imposed the duties after finding the imports were “damaging the local industry significantly.”

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company has halted its work on advanced silicon for a Chinese technology startup to make sure it’s complying with new U.S. export controls (see 2210070049), Bloomberg reported Oct. 22. The Taiwanese chipmaker suspended production for Biren, one of China’s “most promising semiconductor designers,” until it can determine whether Biren’s products are covered by the U.S.’s new advanced chip restrictions, the report said. It said TSMC halted production after coming across public information that Biren’s products outperform Nvidia’s A100 chips, which are captured under the U.S. controls. TSMC didn’t comment.