On Friday, May 29th, President Donald Trump announced intentions to change the policy allowing special economic treatment of Hong Kong in response to new national security legislation announced in China. The US has determined Hong Kong is no longer sufficiently autonomous from mainland China, and will move to eliminate special provisions granted to the territory.
The move is expected to affect US imports from, and exports to the territory in significant ways. The president cited two specific actions that will be taken. The first will revoke the status of separate customs territory from Hong Kong, likely resulting in the extension of Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods to cover products made in Hong Kong. The second action will modify US controls on exports of dual-use technologies to the territory.
The president's full announcement can be viewed here.
OTS will continue to monitor this developing situation and provide updates as they become available. Please contact your OTS Sales representative if you have any questions.