Amendments to Strategic Commodities Control List to Take Effect Today
Friday, October 22, 1999

The Import and Export (Strategic Commodities) Regulations (Amendment of Schedules 1 and 2) Order 1999 will come into operation today (Friday). The amendments seek to reflect the updated international controls on strategic commodities adopted by various international control regimes.

"Hong Kong follows international standards in controlling the import and export of strategic commodities," a spokesman for the Trade Department said. "Such controls are essential for the purpose of maintaining the confidence of supplying countries of these products in our system, thereby enabling our businesses to continue to have access to high-tech products and cutting-edge technologies which originate from these countries and which are necessary for Hong Kong's economic development," he said.

"If international control regimes make changes to their control lists, the Government will follow suit and incorporate the amendments into our legislative framework, as

"One main change to the control list that would take effect today is the raising of the licensing control threshold of the performance of computers from 710 million theoretical operations per second (Mtops) to 2,000 Mtops. This is in line with changes made by the Wassenaar Arrangement, an international non-proliferation regime which governs the controls over dual-use industrial goods and conventional weapons.

"Encryption products at or below 56 bits and certain telecommunications equipment are also removed from our control list. Other major changes to the Schedules include the removal of certain high speed oscilloscopes and transient recorders to reflect the revised control list adopted by the Nuclear Suppliers' Group, and the inclusion of titanium-stabilized duplex stainless steel to reflect the revised control list of the Missile Technology Control Regime."

Copies of the amendment Order are available for sale at the Government Publications Centre, Queensway Government Offices, Low Block, ground floor, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong.

The Trade Department will conduct a number of seminars to brief traders of the details of the amendments. Enquiries on the amendments can also be made to the Strategic Commodities Section, Trade Department, 5th floor, Trade Department Tower, 700 Nathan Road, Mong Kok, Kowloon or by telephone at 2398 5580 or 2398 5572.