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Saudi Arabia Boosts Efficiency of Customs Clearances

Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) officials at the event launching initiative for 2-hour Saudi customs clearances (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) officials at the event launching initiative for 2-hour Saudi customs clearances (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Boosts Efficiency of Customs Clearances

Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) officials at the event launching initiative for 2-hour Saudi customs clearances (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) officials at the event launching initiative for 2-hour Saudi customs clearances (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Saudi Arabia has reduced its customs clearance period from 12 days to 2 hours in a move aimed at increasing the efficiency of customs processes in all the Kingdom’s land, sea and air ports.

The Kingdom, according to a new initiative by the Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority (ZATCA) will target a two-hour customs clearance time at all land, sea and air ports.

The governor of ZATCA, Suhail Abanmi, said that the scheme comes “after the completion of a phase of continuous cooperation and coordination between the customs clearance system.”

“To reach this target is a key possibility for the Kingdom to become a global logistics platform,” added Abanmi.

Speaking at ZATCA’s celebration of World Customs Day, which was marked in Riyadh on Sunday, Abanmi stressed that the newly announced initiative aims to improve customs operations, performance and productivity indicators, strengthen the logistics sector and support the Kingdom’s position in the growth of the world economy.

Abanmi stressed the authority’s commitment to deepen cooperation with local and international bodies, both public and private, in a way that serves the initiative and contributes to enhancing the efficiency of customs services.

He said that the exchange of knowledge between the authority and its customs counterparts was “a top priority.”

“The authority, through its academy, continuously strives to consolidate the importance of building knowledge and skills and developing the potential of its employees through specialized programs in all areas of customs work,” said Abanmi.

“Human capital is the foundation of creativity, innovation and excellence. It is possible to achieve the authority’s strategy, which aims to build an effective working system,” he stressed.

Nashmi Al-Harbi, a logistics expert, said that a higher level of success can be achieved by saving time.

Harbi stressed that Saudi Arabia is proactive in seeking to facilitate and accelerate procedures to achieve the national strategy for transport and logistics services.

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Trump Exempts Mexico Goods from Tariffs for a Month, but Doesn’t Mention Canada

Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)
Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)
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Trump Exempts Mexico Goods from Tariffs for a Month, but Doesn’t Mention Canada

Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)
Construction workers are seen on the site of a new development in Long Beach, California, March 5, 2025. (AFP)

US President Donald Trump on Thursday said Mexico won't be required to pay tariffs on any goods that fall under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade until April 2, but made no mention of a reprieve for Canada despite his Commerce secretary saying a comparable exemption was likely.

"After speaking with President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico, I have agreed that Mexico will not be required to pay Tariffs on anything that falls under the USMCA Agreement," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "This Agreement is until April 2nd."

Earlier on Thursday, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the one-month reprieve on hefty tariffs on goods imported from Mexico and Canada that has been granted to automotive products is likely to be extended to all products that comply with the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade.

Lutnick told CNBC he expected Trump to announce that extension on Thursday, a day after exempting automotive goods from the 25% tariffs he slapped on imports from Canada and Mexico earlier in the week.

Trump "is going to decide this today," Lutnick said, adding "it's likely that it will cover all USMCA-compliant goods and services."

"So if you think about it this way, if you lived under Donald Trump's US-Mexico-Canada agreement, you will get a reprieve from these tariffs now. If you chose to go outside of that, you did so at your own risk, and today is when that reckoning comes," he said.

Nonetheless, Trump's social media post made no mention of a reprieve for Canada, the other party to the USMCA deal that Trump negotiated during his first term as president.

Lutnick said his "off the cuff" estimate was that more than 50% of the goods imported from the two US neighbors - also its largest two trading partners - were compliant with the USMCA deal that Trump negotiated during his first term as president.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Lutnick's comments "promising" in remarks to reporters in Canada.

"That aligns with some of the conversations that we have been having with administration officials, but I'm going to wait for an official agreement to talk about Canadian response and look at the details of it," Trudeau said. "But it is a promising sign. But I will highlight that it means that the tariffs remain in place, and therefore our response will remain in place."

Lutnick emphasized that the reprieve would only last until April 2, when he said the administration plans to move ahead with reciprocal tariffs under which the US will impose levies that match those imposed by trading partners.

In the meantime, he said, the current hiatus is about getting fentanyl deaths down, which is the initial justification Trump used for the tariffs on Mexico and Canada and levies on Chinese goods that have now risen to 20%.

"On April 2, we're going to move with the reciprocal tariffs, and hopefully Mexico and Canada will have done a good enough job on fentanyl that this part of the conversation will be off the table, and we'll move just to the reciprocal tariff conversation," Lutnick said. "But if they haven't, this will stay on."

Indeed, Trudeau is expecting the US and Canada to remain in a trade war.

"I can confirm that we will continue to be in a trade war that was launched by the United States for the foreseeable future," he told reporters in Ottawa.