Browse Data and Analysis

Bite size local news, Post reports and activity summaries wrapped by ATO Hong Kong.

On October 16 the Hong Kong Government (HKG) announced a significant reduction in the duty on imported alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content above 30 percent by volume.

Since USDA first established a stand-alone mission area focusing on trade and international affairs in 2017, USDA’s Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs and the Foreign Agricultural Service, have made significant trade policy advances to support U.S. agriculture. This series of commodity fact sheets highlights the many recent trade policy advances achieved by USDA.

The Finnish Government wants to reform its alcohol policy to promote fair and open competition. It is therefore proposing that the alcohol monopoly ALKO and Finnish food retailers can sell alcoholic beverages online and deliver to a location indicated by the buyer.

Colombia is the largest South American market for U.S. agricultural products and the seventh-largest market for U.S. food and beverage exports globally. Since the U.S. – Colombia Trade Promotion Agreement (CTPA) was implemented in 2012, U.S. agricultural exports have grown by more than 235 percent to a record $3.7 billion in 2023.

On July 7, 2024, Chile’s new alcoholic beverages labeling law will come into force. The law aims to warn drivers, pregnant women, and minors about the impacts of consuming alcohol and to restrict the advertisements that could be directed to minors.

Ample opportunities exist for U.S. agricultural exports to South Korea. Highlighted in the chart above, U.S. agricultural product exports were a record $9.5 billion in 2022, up 2 percent from 2021. South Korea is the sixth largest export market for the United States, thanks in part to a successful free trade agreement (KORUS) between the two countries and a robust demand for high-quality U.S. food products.

This report provides information on the purchase process of Sweden's alcohol monopoly Systembolaget, its different labeling and sustainability guidelines, as well as an analysis of the 2022 sales data per product group - wine, beer, liqueur, whiskey, cider, and mixed drinks.

Japan’s National Tax Agency (NTA) proposed to recognize Single Malt Welsh Whisky as a geographical indication (GI) alcoholic beverage from the United Kingdom (UK).

Chile has a growing and dynamic distilled spirits industry, with a particular focus on pisco production.

Changes to UK alcohol tax rates were implemented on August 1, 2023. The UK government calls this an alcohol duty, but it is an excise tax charged at the point of production or importation of drinks of alcoholic strength exceeding 1.2 percent alcohol by volume (ABV) – the percentage of pure alcohol per liter of product.

On August 21, 2023, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare/Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) published the Food Safety and Standards (Alcoholic Beverages) First Amendment Regulations 2023 in the Gazette of India (Notification No. STD/SP-21/T(Alcohol-4).