| TOP |
| 5th Report of Market Access Ombudsman Council (March 17, 1998) |
1. Complainant: Korean Embassy in Japan
2. Ministry concerned: Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Ministry of International Trade and Industry
3. Complaint:
The advance import confirmation system went into effect to ensure the implementation of the trade volume agreement system based on private meetings held between Japan and Korea. However, despite the fact that the trade volume agreement was abolished in 1995, the advance import confirmation system has been continued.
Since the advance import confirmation system brings about increased work for importation and creates import barriers, this system should be abolished.
4. Corresponding Policy of the Ministries concerned:
The advance import confirmation system for wakame seaweed (Undaria Fusio Formis) is playing an important role to adequately provide information on demand and supply situation to sectors concerned, by promptly and appropriately grasping import trend of wakame seaweed, which is harvested seasonally concentrated, along with the situation of domestic production, and therefore it is considered necessary to maintain this system in the future.
Since the reports from customs are of after-the event and it needs certain time to receive the reports from customs, this system can not be replaced with the reports from customs.
In addition, approximately 35,000 Mt of wakame seaweed has been imported annually in recent years. With respect to composition by exporting countries for recent years, while the amount of import of wakame seaweed from the Republic of Korea has been decreasing, that from People's Republic of China has been substantially increasing. It is considered that this derives from difference in quality, price, etc. of the products concerned between these two countries.
The issues including the points raised the Korean Embassy in Japan and the points presented thereafter were addressed and discussed in depth in the latest governmental consultations at working level on trade of fishery products between Japan and the Republic of Korea held on January 15 and 16, 1998 and both sides shared the views that further discussion would be made in the same consultations to follows.