China may announce an extension of interim measures this week

Lead: foreign report foreign report, according to several Chinese traders, this week the Chinese government may finally issue an official document announcing the extension of the Interim Measures of the genetically modified regulations There are rumors in the domestic soybean market that the Ministry of agriculture will release the announcement within a few days On Tuesday, Jones, a Shanghai trader at a global trade bank, said he had heard that there were two signatures left on the document Once signed, the Ministry of agriculture will issue an announcement Agriculture officials declined to comment when asked when official documents would be released According to China's genetically modified regulations, domestic importers and foreign suppliers must obtain safety certificates and identification certificates from the Ministry of agriculture, and obtain quality inspection permission from AQSIQ before signing soybean contracts or unloading soybeans ZTP soybean importers have been on thin ice due to a lack of official documents, although officials from the Ministry of agriculture have confirmed that the expiry date of the interim measures will be extended from September 20 this year to April 20 2004 Most of China's soybean imports from the United States, Brazil and Argentina are genetically modified ZTP traders said they were not really pleased with the news of the extension because the Ministry of agriculture had not yet begun accepting applications for soybean safety certificates that would arrive after September 20 In the past, many buyers and suppliers signed soybean import contracts before obtaining necessary documents The Chinese government can always deliver the required documents at the last minute so that the soybean cargo can be unloaded But recently, AQSIQ has significantly slowed down the issuance of permits, resulting in the detention of some cargo in the port for nearly a month The government also warned the market not to sign orders for soybeans with foreign suppliers before applying for all approvals From next week to the end of June, 10 ships of soybeans are expected to arrive, some of which have not yet received quality inspection permission, traders said Tuesday ZTP government will not relax the control of soybean import It is generally believed that the Chinese government uses such strategies to control soybean import, so as to protect the interests of domestic farmers A Beijing trader said the government may announce the extension of the genetically modified regulations this week, but it may not We lack confidence in this We still think that they want to control imports, so it's logical to delay a little longer ZTP China Customs data shows that between January and may this year, China has imported about 7.67 million tons of soybeans, an increase of 169% year on year In 2002, the total imports of soybeans reached 11.3 million tons, down 19% year on year Once ZTP officially announced the extension of the interim measures, importers would bid for soybeans, especially those to be delivered later in August At present, buyers are still cautious when signing new ships According to traders, ZTP hopes to control soybean imports to 12 million tons in 2003, but the government has loosened up due to pressure from the crushing industry ZTP