The Russian government extended the preferential regime for the supply of fruits and vegetables from Moldova until the end of 2019. The corresponding resolution is published in on the website of the Russian government.
The zero rate for customs duty will apply to the following goods: vegetables and some edible roots and tubers; fresh apples, pears, quince, apricots, cherries, peaches (including nectarines), plums and thorns; vegetables cooked or canned, without the addition of vinegar or acetic acid, unfrozen, except for the products of HS code 2006; grape natural wines, including fortified, grape must, except as specified in HS code 2009.
There are instructions for the Ministry of Economical Developmet, the Ministry of External Affairs and the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation to make, if necessary, until 20 September the proposal to change the term of application of the zero rate. Monthly monitoring of import of products will be carried out by the Federal customs service.
It is noted that due to the preferential regime, the volume of deliveries to Russia for four commodity groups in January – May 2019 increased significantly compared to the same period in 2018. The import of vegetables increased from 360 MT to almost 2,370 MT, or 6.6 times more. The import of apples increased from 100,000 MT to almost 167,000 MT, or by 67%. The import of canned products grew from 1,275 MT to almost 1,940 MT during the reported period.