Myanmar food manufacturers need to seek mandatory GACC registration

Myanmar food exporters are required to be registered with the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China (GACC), according to the Ministry of Commerce. According to GACC Decrees 248 and 249, GACC registration is mandatory for food exporters starting from 1 January. That being so, Myanmar’s food products in 18 food groups such as meat products, fishery products, dairy products and edible bird’s nests, honey and honey products, eggs and egg products, edible oil, frozen food products, edible seeds and nuts, malted barley, fresh vegetable, dried beans, spices, hard nuts and seeds, dried fruits, coffee beans and cocoa beans, special nutritious food and supplements are required to be registered with GACC.

For GACC registration, the relevant authorities are the Agriculture Department, the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department (LBVD), the Fisheries Department and Food and Drugs Administration. Between 1 December 2021 and 30 September 2022, 1,850 applications of 1,022 companies and factories have been submitted to GACC. Among them, 1,711 applications by 883 companies were forwarded through the Agriculture Department, while 118 through the Fisheries Department, 12 through the LBVD and nine through the FDA. Exporters can directly access China International Trade Single Window through https://cifer.singlewindow.cn by creating accounts for those food groups which are not listed on those 18 groups. 

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

Trafigura’s Puma Energy to sell Myanmar business to local private company

Trafigura’s Puma Energy, which is the main supplier of aviation fuel in Myanmar, has signed an agreement to sell its stake in Myanmar to a local private company, according to the official statement on 5 October.

Following a board decision to exit Myanmar earlier this year, Trafigura’s Puma Energy has signed an agreement to sell its stake in Puma Energy Asia Sun (PEAS) and National Energy Puma Aviation Services (NEPAS) to a locally owned private company.

National Energy Puma Aviation Services Company (NEPASC), a joint venture between Singapore-based Puma Energy and state-owned Myanmar Petrochemical Enterprise, has executed the jet fuel business since 2015.

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar

Individual entitled to buy seven visses of gold: MGEA

The Mandalay Region Gold Entrepreneurs Association (MGEA) will sell about seven visses of gold (seven gold bars) each to individual in a bid to reduce the gold price. A gold bar weighs 10 ticals (one viss equals 100 ticals). The sales of pure gold bars will start on 7 October. The gold buyers can purchase them at the office of MGEA located on 67th street between 40thx41st streets in Mahaaungmyay Township, by presenting a citizenship scrutiny card. The association stated that they will offer a cheaper price in an attempt to control the volatile gold price.

The price of gold will be declared only at 2 pm on 7 October. Except for the members of the MGEA, anyone is free to buy them. At present, the price of pure gold ticked up to K2.6 million per tical (0.578 ounce or 0.016 kilogramme) in the domestic markets, tracking the mild rebound in gold spot prices in international markets and Kyat weakening against the US dollar. The soaring dollar exchanging at over K4,500 pushed up the pure gold price to a record-high of K3.7 million per tical in late August. The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation is, therefore, selling gold bars and coins in order for the gold price to ease.

Furthermore, the governor of the Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) and officials of the Monitoring and Steering Committee on the Gold and Currency Market discussed matters regarding the stability of the gold and currency market and supporting plans of the banks for gold bar transactions to be made with banking system on14 September in Nay Pyi Taw. Then, on 30 September, the seven private banks opened special counters at the designated 48 branches to offer banking services for gold transactions.

According to CBM’s directive (43/2021) dated 3 November 2021, lump sum payments worth more than K20 million for buying or selling assets have to be processed with the banking system. The seven private banks are providing banking services by opening special counters at their 48 branches in Yangon and Mandalay regions and Mon State (Mawlamyine) to facilitate gold transactions with the banking payment system. Those banks are Kanbawza Bank (KBZ Bank), Co-operative Bank (CB Bank) PCL, Ayeyawady (AYA) Bank, Myanmar Apex Bank (MAB), UAB Bank, Yoma Bank and Ayeyawady Farmers Development Bank (A Bank).

Source: The Global New Light of Myanmar