The African air cargo market faces challenges such as trade barriers and geopolitical conflicts. However, industry leaders suggest measures like resource integration, manufacturing development, and the construction of secondary airports to enhance market growth potential and efficiency. The trade relationship between Africa and East Asia has shown strong growth, indicating significant future development opportunities.
With the support of the SECO-WCO Global Trade Facilitation Programme, Serbia has established a Customs-Business Roundtable. This initiative aims to strengthen cooperation between customs and the private sector, address trade challenges, optimize policies, improve customs clearance efficiency, and enhance the overall trade environment, ultimately promoting economic growth. This marks a significant step for Serbia in trade facilitation, with the potential to attract more investment and build a prosperous trade future.
The WCO is assisting Philippine Customs in building a trade facilitation team to improve trade efficiency and support the work of the Philippine Trade Facilitation Committee. This initiative aims to streamline customs procedures, reduce trade costs, and enhance the overall competitiveness of the Philippines in the global market. By strengthening the capacity of Philippine Customs, the WCO is contributing to the country's efforts to implement trade facilitation measures and promote economic growth.
The General Administration of Customs has introduced new measures to promote stable growth in foreign trade and encourage innovation in processing trade. By optimizing management models and supporting high-tech and environmentally-friendly repair services, the transition of processing trade towards higher-end segments is accelerated. Additionally, the simplification of approval processes reduces the burden on enterprises, providing convenience for the healthy development of foreign trade.
Uzbekistan launched the second phase of the Global Trade Facilitation Program (GTFP), aiming to enhance customs capabilities, optimize trade processes, reduce trade costs, and promote cross-border trade development. The project will focus on organizational development and trade facilitation, leveraging WCO capacity-building tools to upgrade Uzbekistan's customs system, injecting new momentum into economic growth. This initiative seeks to streamline procedures, improve efficiency, and ultimately contribute to a more competitive and integrated trading environment for Uzbekistan.
In the first two months of 2025, Dongguan's total foreign trade import and export value increased by 21.7% year-on-year, reaching 228.38 billion yuan. Import and export to ASEAN saw significant growth. Private enterprises were the main driving force behind the increase, with general trade accounting for more than half. Exports of high-tech products led the way, while traditional industries also maintained growth. This strong start for Dongguan's foreign trade is driven by both internal and external factors, indicating a positive trend in economic transformation and upgrading.
Bangladesh's accession to the Revised Kyoto Convention marks a significant step towards trade facilitation. This convention aims to simplify customs procedures, improve clearance efficiency, enhance trade environment transparency, promote information technology application, strengthen risk management, and foster closer trade partnerships. This will inject new impetus into Bangladesh's economic development by streamlining trade processes and creating a more predictable and efficient trading environment, ultimately contributing to economic growth and competitiveness.
South Asian countries like India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka are enhancing trade efficiency and convenience through customs modernization. Digital platforms, trade agreements, and policy improvements are driving innovations in customs procedures, injecting new momentum into regional economic growth and global market competitiveness.
The trade agreement signed by the Trump administration raises tariff levels, making the Trans-Pacific trade environment more uncertain, which adds pressure on global businesses and economic cooperation. Companies face risks of rising costs, making it increasingly important to seek alternative solutions to navigate the uncertainty.
With Tunisia's accession, the Revised Kyoto Convention now has 112 contracting parties, signaling accelerated global trade facilitation. This convention, a blueprint for modern customs, aims to reduce trade costs and improve customs clearance efficiency by simplifying procedures, optimizing risk management, and utilizing information technology. It promotes global trade growth and complements the WTO's Trade Facilitation Agreement, jointly building an open and prosperous trade system. The convention's focus on streamlined processes and technological advancements is crucial for enhancing customs efficiency worldwide.
