Pakistan recently ended certain duties on a range of raw materials imported by its textile industry, including woven fabrics, artificial filament yarn and artificial staple fiber, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Oct. 28. The move, which took effect Oct. 13, will remove “regulatory” duties and “additional customs duty” on the items, which also include wool, certain animal hair and sewing thread from artificial filaments.

The Central Bank of Nigeria said it will sanction international shipping and airfreight companies for noncompliance with a 2017 directive related to bills of lading and airway bills, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council said Oct. 27. The directive requires all exports to carry “Nigerian Export Proceeds (NXP) form numbers” on their bills, the report said. Nigeria said it recently completed an audit of shipping companies that showed several businesses were not complying with the order, adding that it will impose “severe sanctions” for continued noncompliance, HKTDC reported. The country also plans to issue guidance to help industry better “verify the authenticity of NXP form numbers submitted.”

The Canada government issued the following trade-related notice as of Oct. 30 (some may also be given separate headlines):

Singapore Customs issued an Oct. 30 guidance on the Association of Southeast Asian Nation’s Customs Transit System (ACTS), which it said will improve land transportation of goods when it takes effect Nov. 2. The system, which Singapore said will be implemented among some ASEAN member states, will allow traders to “submit a single ACTS electronic declaration to cover the entire transit journey,” Singapore said. The guidance contains details on how traders can register for the system and other conditions.

Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced sanctions and trade restrictions on two people for illegally importing protected wildlife, the agency said Oct. 30. Japan said Shigeyuki Koyama and Mamoru Miyata imported 15 live Australian lungfish from Indonesia without the required licenses, according to an unofficial translation of the notice. The fish are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. Japan said the two people are now subject to import bans.

India increased restrictions on exports of “onion seeds,” the country’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade said in an Oct. 29 notice. The notice changed India's export policy on onion seeds from “restricted” to “prohibited,” effective immediately.

China recently said it will not classify materials that meet the standards of recycling materials for brass, copper and aluminum alloys as solid wastes and will therefore allow those imports, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council reported Oct. 30. Those materials that meet China’s national standards can be “imported freely,” China said, while others may be imported if already covered by a 2020 import license for solid wastes that can be used under certain restrictions for scrap metal.

The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs began a review Oct. 28 of a State Department rule that would amend International Traffic in Arms Regulations requirements for certain countries. The proposed rule would modify the ITAR for Tunisia, Eritrea, Somalia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Cote d'Ivoire, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, as well as “other changes.” The agency has mentioned the rule in past regulatory agendas (see 2007200005 and 1911250035).

A Chinese energy company, its U.S. affiliate and a Chinese national were charged with conspiracy to steal technology and trade secrets from a U.S. company, the Justice Department said Oct. 29. The agency said China-based Jason Energy Technologies (JET), U.S.-based Jason Oil and Gas Equipment and Chinese national Lei Gao worked with Robert Erford of Dayton, Texas, to steal the technology from a Houston oil and gas manufacturer.

The Democrat who would lead the Finance Committee if the Senate majority changes parties after the election blasted President Donald Trump over labor, auto rules of origin, dairy and biotech export regulations, in a letter that said the benefits promised in renegotiating NAFTA have not been delivered. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., wrote in the Oct. 30 letter that “the Administration has yet to bring any enforcement action under either the state-to-state dispute settlement or the new Rapid Response Mechanism despite the persistence of labor violations in Mexico.”