Press Releases

Amendments to strategic commodities control list gazetted
Friday, April 30, 2004

The Government will table at the Legislative Council on May 5, 2004 the Import and Export (Strategic Commodities) Regulations (Amendment of Schedule 1) Order 2004 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, i.e. 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 changes include the relaxation of control threshold of computers from the current 28,000 million theoretical operations per second (Mtops) to 190,000 Mtops and the removal of control over general purpose microprocessors."

"Traders should welcome the amendment as it would relieve them of the burden of applying for import and export licences for microprocessors and most commonly available computers."

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

He added that any person who imported or exported an article specified in the Schedules to the Import and Export (Strategic Commodities) Regulations without a valid licence was liable to unlimited fine and imprisonment for seven years if convicted. The goods will also be forfeited.

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

The Amendment Order was gazetted today and will be introduced into the Legislative Council on 5 May 2004. It will come into force on a day to be appointed by the Director-General of Trade and Industry by notice in the Gazette. Traders may visit the website of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, www.gov.hk to access 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 5587 or by email at stc@tid.gov.hk.

The Department will also inform traders of the details of the amended Schedule through circulars and general advisory service.

Ends