Press Releases

Amendments to strategic commodities control list gazetted
Friday, June 8, 2001

The Government will table at the Legislative Council on 13 June 2001 the Import and Export (Strategic Commodities) Regulations (Amendment of Schedule 1 and 2) Order 2001 to reflect the updated international controls on strategic commodities.

"The amendments aim to reflect the revised control lists adopted by the various international control regimes including the Wassenaar Arrangement, Missile Technology Control Regime, Australia Group and Nuclear Suppliers Group, " a spokesman for the Trade and Industry Department said, "The more significant change is the relaxation of control threshold of computers from the current 6,500 million theoretical operations per second (Mtops) to 28,000 Mtops and that of microprocessors from 3,500 Mtops to 6,500 Mtops. Retail encryption products satisfying certain conditions are also released from control."

"Traders should welcome the amendment as it would relieve them of the burden of taking out import and export licences for a variety of microprocessors, computers and software with encryption features."

Under Hong Kong's legislative framework, import and export of strategic commodities are subject to licensing controls by the Director-General of Trade and Industry. "The purpose of licensing control is to monitor and control the flow of strategic commodities, and hence to maintain the confidence of the supplying countries of these products in our control system, thereby ensuring Hong Kong's continued access to high-technology products," said the spokesman.

"Hong Kong has been closely following the control thresholds adopted by the international control regimes as our reference in imposing the licensing requirements. Whenever these regimes introduce changes to their control lists, Hong Kong would follow suit to ensure that on the one hand, we would always be upholding controls to the highest international standards and on the other, we would be exempting traders from licensing controls whenever international standards are relaxed," he said.

If the Legislative Council raises no objection to the amendments, they will come into force on a day in July 2001, to be appointed by the Director-General of Trade and Industry, by notice in the Government Gazette.

The Amendment Order is gazetted today (Friday). Government gazettes are available for sale at the Government Publications Centre, Queensway Government Offices, Low Block, ground floor, 66 Queensway, Hong Kong. Traders may also visit the website of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, www.info.gov.hk to see the gazette.

Enquiries on the amendments can be made to the Strategic Trade Controls Branch, Trade and Industry Department, 5th floor, Trade and Industry Department Tower, 700 Nathan Road, Mong Kok, Kowloon, by telephone at 2398 5580 / 2398 5572 or by email at stc@tid.gov.hk.

The Department will also inform traders of the details of the amended Schedule by circular and seminars.