China's fertilizer export latest policy

China's latest policy on fertilizer exports is to implement a zero-tariff system. China no longer levies export tariffs on a number of fertilizer commodities such as potassium chloride, potassium sulfate and compound fertilizer. The full abolition of export tariffs is conducive to increasing exports to absorb the pressure of domestic overcapacity.

I. Zero tariff refers to the import and export commodities in passing through a country's customs border, is set by the government of customs does not impose tariffs on the import and export countries.

Two, China's zero tariff status quo and development

With the development of the world trade liberalization process, tariff concessions, especially zero tariff agreement has become the focus of attention of countries around the world. After China's accession to the WTO, it has basically realized its "WTO accession" commitment in five years' time; not only that, China has also signed zero-tariff agreements with certain trading partners, which has further reduced its average tariff level. China's zero-tariff mechanism is still in the early stage of development and has produced certain trade creation effects, but China still needs to develop the zero-tariff mechanism more rationally, strategically and effectively, so as to obtain greater economic benefits in the process of global economic integration and trade liberalization. Since China's accession to the World Trade Organization in 2001, it has been committed to gradually lowering its average tariff level and realizing its WTO commitments. At present, although China's average tariff level is still higher than the average tariff rate of 3.8% in developed countries, it is already at a lower level compared with some developing countries; not only that, the zero-tariff agreements signed between China and some trading partners have further reduced China's average tariff level, which has helped China to gain more advantages and benefits in the process of bilateral or multilateral trade liberalization.

Three, China's zero tariff mechanism of the development of the proposal

(a) to establish a zero tariff mechanism of the dynamic development of the concept of the WTO framework, the zero tariff mechanism not only includes the trade in goods "zero tariff", but also covers the field of trade in services "zero tariff". After the establishment of the WTO, negotiations on the movement of natural persons, maritime transport services, basic telecommunications, financial services and other issues have been carried out, and the Agreement on Basic Telecommunications and the Agreement on Financial Services have been reached successively, with participants committing themselves to different degrees of market liberalization, which is in fact a zero-tariff agreement in the area of trade in services. In the Arrangement on the Establishment of Closer Economic and Trade Relations signed with Hong Kong and Macao, China has not only included zero tariff in trade in goods, but also covered the liberalization of the relevant service areas. Even in the area of trade in goods, the zero-tariff mechanism is constantly evolving, with a gradual increase in the number of products and countries involved in zero-tariff agreements, and the "zero-tariff for non-agricultural products" proposal put forward by the United States is the zero-tariff agreement that involves the largest number of products and countries. Although this agreement was opposed by many countries, especially developing countries, we must realize that global economic integration is an irreversible trend, and that large-scale tariff reductions on a global scale are the general trend. Zero tariffs and the liberalization of international trade are one of the inevitable results of the development process of global economic integration. For example, in 1996 when the United States put forward the concept of zero tariffs on information technology products, other countries were incredulous, but by 1997, more than 40 countries joined the Agreement on Information Technology Products one after another.

(II) Selective Development of Bilateral or Multilateral Zero Tariff AgreementsIt should be said that China currently does not have the ability and capacity to participate in large-scale and wide-ranging zero tariff agreements. As mentioned earlier, only when the economic structure and product structure among the member countries of the zero tariff agreement are close or similar, the implementation of the zero tariff agreement will bring about a larger trade creation effect for the economic development of the participating countries of the agreement. Thus, it will bring positive consumption effect for the consumers of the countries implementing the zero tariff agreement. At present, China's economic structure and export product structure have obvious differences compared with developed countries, China's exports are mainly labor-intensive products, such as textiles, clothing, shoes and hats, etc.; while the most competitive in developed countries are capital- and technology-intensive products, such as automobiles, high-end machines and mechanical products. The practice of worldwide trade liberalization also shows that the global zero-tariff process is promoted first by industry, then by region, and finally globally. Therefore, China must lay the foundation and accumulate experience for the further expansion of the zero-tariff mechanism in the future by selectively developing bilateral or multilateral zero-tariff agreements.

(3) Avoiding the negative effects of the zero-tariff mechanism For developing countries at the lower level of the international division of labor and the lower end of the international supply chain, the lower the level of economic development, the greater the loss to be borne after joining the zero-tariff agreement. Especially when a country's international competitiveness is too weak, but also need moderate trade protection policy to foster the time, too hasty to join the zero tariff agreement instead of enjoying the positive effects brought by the zero tariff agreement, on the contrary, it will make the country's infant industry or vulnerable industries by foreign mature industries to be strangled, at the same time, some important domestic economic sectors will also gradually be foreign-funded enterprises control, and ultimately not only the loss of In the end, it will not only lose the economic benefits that should be obtained in the process of international trade development, but also threaten the economic security of the country. Although China has certain export advantages in certain labor-intensive products, such as textiles, garments, shoes and hats, etc., and the zero-tariff plan may also bring about a trade creation effect in these industries, thus expanding the export and development of these traditionally advantageous industries, we should also be soberly aware that there are still some industries in China, such as automobiles, machinery manufacturing, and foodstuffs, etc., which are not equipped to cope with the zero-tariff mechanism. In addition, we should also see that developed countries rely more on non-tariff measures to restrict the exports of China's advantageous industries, such as the United States often impose anti-dumping measures on China's textiles, so the zero-tariff plan for these products does not necessarily bring more economic benefits to China.

(D) reasonable use of non-tariff measures as a zero-tariff mechanism to supplement the United States dared to put forward the "non-agricultural products zero-tariff" program, one is the United States at present the average tariff level of less than 5%, to 2010 tariff rates reduced to zero, less than 5% concessions; Secondly, tariffs in developed countries has been very low, and the use of non-tariff measures to restrict imports to protect their domestic industries, and more widely used. Secondly, the tariff levels of developed countries are already very low, while the use of non-tariff measures to restrict imports to protect their domestic industries is more widely used, and more skillful in practice and more covert in means. For example, according to the latest and direct notifications submitted by OECD to the WTO Negotiating Group on Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA) by a number of developing country governments, technical barriers to trade (TBT) are the most important trade obstacle faced by developing countries in their trade with developed countries, accounting for almost half of the total number of notifications (44.4%). In fact, WTO rules do not prohibit the use of all non-tariff measures, and today's international trade has entered an era of expanding trade liberalization with many exceptions and rules, as well as how to deal with and set up trade protection, in particular how to apply non-tariff measures for trade protection. The gradual reduction of tariff levels and the elimination of non-tariff barriers is not only a commitment of China's accession to the WTO, but also a general trend. But this does not mean that we must give up the rational use of non-tariff measures. On the contrary, when China's zero-tariff mechanism is gradually developing, we should learn to use non-tariff measures rationally, and shift the main means of protecting the domestic market from tariff measures to non-tariff measures licensed by the WTO and widely practiced within the international community, such as anti-dumping measures, rules of origin, customs valuation and pre-shipment inspections, etc., as well as shifting from the adoption of traditional non-tariff measures, such as quantitative restrictions and governmental administration, to The shift from traditional non-tariff measures, such as quantitative restrictions and government administration, to measures that do not directly restrict the quantity of imports, but in practice can also play a protective role. Must make full use of the WTO rules and allow the use of safeguard measures, through the construction and improvement of the standard system, and actively participate in international rule-making to establish China's long-term, active non-tariff measures strategic planning.

(E) Strategic use of zero-tariff mechanism to participate in international trade negotiations zero-tariff mechanism is one of the results of the process of trade liberalization, but also to promote the development of regional economic liberalization is an important means and ways. At present, almost all the free trade area negotiations are impossible to avoid the topic of tariff concessions and preferences, most of which involve zero tariffs, which shows that the zero tariff agreement has become a very important aspect of trade negotiations. From the process of bilateral trade facilitation to regional free trade areas, and from the development of regional economic organizations to economic globalization, global zero-tariff reform is also bound to become the focus of negotiations in the further development of the world's multilateral trading system.

Legal basis

The second article of the Notice of the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council on the Adjustment Program of Import and Export Provisional Duty Rates in 2019 stipulates that the export tariff rate will continue to levy export tariffs or implement the export provisional duty rate on 108 export commodities such as ferrochrome from January 1, 2019, and that the rate of the tariff rate will remain unchanged, and cancel the 94 items of export temporary duty rates.