Hong Kong customs seizes 278 million cigarettes in tobacco smuggling crackdown
The Customs and Excise Department said on Thursday that it had strengthened cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region to curb the inflow of illicit cigarettes since November last year.
The 278 million contraband cigarettes seized in 84 large-scale cases during the first half were estimated to be worth about HK$1.25 billion, with a duty potential of around HK$920 million, customs added.
Around 49 million cigarettes were uncovered in four large-scale cases involving fishing boats under a joint surveillance operation with mainland Chinese authorities targeting maritime tobacco smuggling syndicates earlier this year.
Lam Chak-lun, acting deputy head of the customs revenue crimes investigation bureau, said that smugglers had shifted from using traditional cargo ships and speedboats to less conspicuous fishing vessels.
Each of these vessels, often disguised with fishing gear and operating among other fishing boats, could carry up to 10 million cigarettes – equivalent to the capacity of a 40-foot container, he said.
Between March and July, Hong Kong and Singapore customs also conducted a joint operation that intercepted 107 million illicit cigarettes hidden in 33 shipping containers arriving from the city state in multiple seaborne smuggling cases.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
21 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Trump aide Navarro calls India's Russian oil purchases ‘laundromat for the Kremlin'
White House trade adviser Peter Navarro blasted India for continuing to buy Russian oil and said he expects punitive tariffs of 50 per cent on imports from the South Asian nation to kick in as planned next week. 'I see that taking place,' Navarro told reporters in front of the White House when asked about the tariffs on India that are set to double on August 27. 'India doesn't appear to want to recognise its role in the bloodshed. It simply doesn't. It's cozying up to Xi Jinping, is what it's doing.' The fresh salvo is the latest from the trade hawk and comes after India has signalled it will keep buying Russian oil, a step that would preserve a vital market for Moscow. Stung by the steep 50 per cent levy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has reiterated its long-standing friendship with Russia and moved to ease tensions with regional rival China in recent days. India has ramped up oil imports from Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, when Group of Seven nations imposed a US$60-per-barrel price cap on Moscow's crude that aimed to limit the Kremlin's energy revenue. The Trump administration sees those purchases as helping fund Russia's war, with 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods set to be among the highest on any country's products. 'They don't need the oil. It's a refining profit sharing scheme. It's a laundromat for the Kremlin. That's the reality of that,' Navarro said. 'Look, Modi is a great leader. But please, please India, like, look at what is, what your role here is in the global economy and good here. It's like, what you're doing right now is not creating peace, it's perpetuating the war.' Oil advanced in a choppy session after the comments.
South China Morning Post
21 minutes ago
- South China Morning Post
Nvidia halts H20 AI chip production amid China concerns: report
Nvidia has told some component suppliers to suspend production of its H20 AI chip, designed specifically for the Chinese market, the Information reported on Thursday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the communications. According to the report, Nvidia instructed Arizona-based Amkor Technology to stop production of the H20 chips this week and also notified South Korea's Samsung Electronics. Amkor handles advanced packaging for the chip, while Samsung supplies high-bandwidth memory chips for the model. Neither company immediately responded to a Reuters request for comment. Meanwhile, a Nvidia representative said in a statement, 'We constantly manage our supply chain to address market conditions.' 'As both governments recognise, the H20 is not a military product or for government infrastructure. China won't rely on American chips for government operations, just like the US government would not rely on chips from China,' it said.
South China Morning Post
an hour ago
- South China Morning Post
Chinese brokers boost pay for junior bankers in Hong Kong deals boom
Citic Securities and other Chinese brokers are raising pay levels again for junior bankers in Hong Kong to boost retention and handle a jump in deal-making, according to people familiar with the moves. China's biggest broker was raising pay at its Hong Kong CLSA unit, giving 15 per cent to 30 per cent bumps to about HK$75,000 (US$9,600) to HK$80,000 a month to select junior associates, the people said, asking not to be identified because they are not authorised to discuss compensation. The raises did not apply across the board, one of the people said. Pay was now back at 2022 levels, but still below what first- to third-year associates earned in 2021, when deal activity hit multi-decade highs, one of the people said. China Merchants Bank's Hong Kong arm, CMB International (CMBI), has also lifted pay to similar levels for juniors, while a number of other firms are considering raises to follow suit amid rising competition for talent, according to people familiar with the matter. An electronic display board at the Hong Kong stock exchange. Photo: Xinhua The increases and planned bumps mark a stark turnaround after pay was lowered over the past few years and bonuses and perks were gutted, especially on the mainland, amid a political shift to rein in private enterprise. Bankers in particular were singled out by the ruling Communist Party as leading 'hedonistic' lifestyles, leading firms to also take a cautious approach in Hong Kong.
