ECONOMIC/TRADE ISSUES

On 28 July 2020, the Council of the EU published the bloc’s response to the implementation of the National Security Law for Hong Kong. The conclusions call on the EU and its member states to take extra measures when exporting sensitive equipment and technologies to Hong Kong. Traders who decide to go for a de-risking strategy should therefore stay tuned to the new trade realities and check with the competent authorities with regard to whether goods they wish to trade are affected. More

The US Department of Commerce has suspended the preferential treatment Hong Kong received in comparison to mainland China. This affects such issues as export licence exceptions for items subject to Export Administration Regulations. Hong Kong companies should pay close attention to the new realities in order to avoid violations, as well as to the legislation details to ascertain whether transaction partners and / or traded items fall within the remit of these changed US regulations. More

On 15 May 2020, after the conclusion of the third round of trade talks between the EU and the UK, both sides stated that negotiations had become deadlocked over the UK’s refusal to commit to EU environmental, social, labour and regulatory standards. The stalemate underlines the lack of progress that has been made so far. The two sides remain deeply divided ahead of a high-level summit due to take place between EU leaders and Prime Minister Boris Johnson in June 2020. More

The United Kingdom has introduced its Trade Bill. It was announced as an important element of the UK’s post-Brexit independent trade policy. The Trade Bill covers the following fields: (i) government procurement; (ii) implementation of trade agreements; (iii) trade defence; and (iv) data collection and sharing. Overall, the Trade Bill contains measures that are intended to provide continuity and certainty for UK businesses and consumers in a post-Brexit scenario. More