The General Administration of Customs recently announced its decision to revise and scrap a number of documents relating to the management of inbound items, with effect from 1 December. Adjustments have been made with regard to the management of inbound and outbound personal postal items, customs declarations for inbound and outbound passengers, and duties on vapes. Previous announcements and notices concerning the release of personal baggage carried by inbound and outbound passengers and the amount of duty-free tobacco and cigarettes that passengers can bring into the country have been scrapped.

On 25 October, the State Council issued a circular calling for efforts to replicate and promote experimental measures to align with international economic and trade rules and standards, and to steadily expand institutional opening-up. In pilot free trade zones, measures to be promoted include permitting foreign financial institutions to offer new financial services, and allowing enterprises and individuals to purchase offshore financial services. Measures that will be promoted nationwide include free inward and outward remittance of all relevant transfers of funds by foreign investors.

On 25 November 2024, the European Commission formally requested consultations at the World Trade Organization (WTO) over the provisional anti-dumping measures imposed by the Chinese mainland on imports of EU brandy.

Indonesia has begun enforcing its halal certification and labelling requirements for food and beverage-related goods and services as of 17 October 2024 for medium and large businesses. Indonesia’s Law No. 33 of 2014 concerning Halal Product Assurance (Halal Law) mandates the gradual enforcement of halal certification from October 2024 to October 2034. The first phase covers food and beverage-related goods and services. From October 2026 the second phase will apply to traditional medicines and food supplements, cosmetics, chemical products, clothing items, household appliances and Class A medical devices, among others. The third phase, from October 2029, will cover Class B medical devices, while the last phase, from October 2034, will include prescription medicines and Class C medical devices.