China to require new scrap import licenses: ISRI

The Chinese government will require import licenses for the eight categories of scrap metal the country recently added to its restricted list, according to the Washington DC-based Institute of Scrap Recycling (ISRI).

"Specifically, the list of materials...which currently do not have any restrictions imposed on them, will only be allowed for import with a license starting in July," ISRI said in a note to members.

For aluminum, the changes will restrict harmonized tariff (HTS) code 7602000090 other aluminum waste, while for copper it will restrict 7404000090 other copper waste. The list also includes six ferrous grades, but China is not a significant importer of steel scrap.

ISRI expects the "other" aluminum and copper scrap categories to include so-called category 6 "smelter ready" material that does not require further processing. Category 7 scrap which requires extra processing—such as electric motors—is already the target of an outright ban starting in 2020.

Still, ISRI told Argus that China has not clarified for the organization the exact definitions for category 6 and 7 materials, making the designations for shredded metals such as zorba and zurik unclear. The US uses HTS codes to identify commodity imports and exports and does not use the "category" definitions employed by China.

China, a major buyer of US and European nonferrous scrap metal, launched restrictions on imported waste in July 2017 in order to protect the country's environment and to encourage domestic recycling. Since then, China has significantly cut down on its intake of foreign scrap, forcing US and European dealers to find new markets.

The restrictions were also followed up by Chinese retaliatory tariffs on aluminum scrap imports in April in response to US trade action.

China approves more CCIC offices after re-shuffle

China has also approved four additional China Certification and Inspection Certification (CCIC) offices to do pre-shipment inspections of scrap metal bound for the country, adding to the new list of 21 approved locations released in November 2018.

The latest announcement adds Spain, the Netherlands, Taiwan to the list, in addition to a Europe office, which is also located in the Netherlands, ISRI said.

Still, there has been no mention on the status of Brazil, Argentina, India, Sri Lanka Russia and Hungary, which were once approved locations.

In November, China released a new list of approved CCIC offices, which some excluded locations that had formerly been approved to conduct pre-shipment inspections, causing confusion among market participants.