China Reduces Tariffs on Imports from Kenya and Other States

According to the Africa Report, Kenya has now been included in the list of 41 countries enjoying reduced tariffs into China.  Other recipients are largely LDCs as agreed in the 4th Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation- Sharm El Sheikh Action Plan (2010-2012).

BEIJING (Reuters) - China is adding 33 states to the list of developing countries whose goods are largely exempt from import tariffs, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday. It said that from July 1 it would scrap tariffs on about 60 percent of imports from countries on the list, which include Ethiopia, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Madagascar, the Comoros and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Burundi, Malawi, Mozambique, Benin, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, Central African Republic are also on the list. In Asia-Pacific, beneficiaries include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Samoa and Vanuatu. Since 2001, China has had 41 countries on the zero-tariff list.

This is especially interesting especially because Kenya is not an LDC.

Further reports show that China would grant zero tariffs status to 4,762 categories of commodities.  China imports scrap metal, fruits, nuts sisal fibre, row hides and skins, fish, black tea, coffee, and leather wares from Kenya and scrapping tariffs on these produce means their cost will fall in China by between three to 30 per cent — the current range of the Asian country’s external tariffs.

According to other sources, the balance of trade between Kenya and China has worsened over the last five years in favour of the Asian countries. Official statistics indicate that while Kenya’s exports to China only grew at a snail pace from Sh1.2 billion in 2005 to Sh2.5 billion in 2009, imports have risen phenomenally to Sh74.5 billion from Sh19.4 billion in 2005.