PHILIPPINES, July 2, 2004 -- Coconut oil and copra meal exports in March 2004 increased by 22.4 and 22.6 percent, respectively, from their previous year's levels. There were no copra exports during the month.

PHILIPPINES, July 2, 2004 -- Increased non-solid wood use will result in more imports of tropical hardwood lumber, veneer and plywood through 2005 while tropical hardwood log imports are expected to decline during the period. A large GRP budget deficit, coupled with renewed weakness of the Peso, are expected to dampen any significant increase in imports. As a result, the combined imports of tropical hardwood lumber, veneers and plywood in 2004 are expected to remain flat compared to the 2003 level.

CHINA, PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF, July 2, 2004 -- This is an UNOFFICIAL translation of the People's Republic of China AQSIQ 2004 Announcement No. 73 "Items on Handling the Review and Approval for Entry Animal and Plant Quarantine" and should be used as a guide only. Exporters should carefully discuss regulations and their application with Chinese importers to ensure that their interpretation of the regulation is accurate. This announcement has not been notified to the WTO.

JAPAN, July 2, 2004 -- Japan produced 28,000 metric tons of fresh asparagus in January - December 2003, down approximately 1.4 percent from the previous year. Higher U.S. market prices have reduced estimated imports 10 percent in 2004. Estimated imports from Mexico are also down, an estimated 23 percent, as hot weather hurts production. Imports of low-cost Chinese asparagus is up significantly.

THAILAND, July 2, 2004 -- Export prices of white rice softened slightly, following the slowdown in domestic prices. Foreign demand remained weak.

EU-25, July 2, 2004 -- This weekly report contains data on rice prices in the U.S., Thailand and the EU. It also lists current import duties and export subsidies in the EU. All information will be published as such in the USDA publication "Rice Market News".

KUWAIT, July 2, 2004 -- This report is an unofficial translation of the Arab Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) Standard No. 993/1998. This standard governs conditions of Halal slaughter of animals that is to be conducted according to the Islamic Law (Shari'a). The Governments of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates enforce this standard under their respective national standard numbers. This standard should not/not be confused with the regulations that govern the accreditation of Islamic Centers which supervise the Halal slaughter process and issue the Halal certificate.

SOUTH AFRICA, REPUBLIC OF, July 2, 2004 -- South Africa's food manufacturing industry continues to offer good potential for US food ingredients. South Africa's food ingredients and processing sector follows trends in the rest of the world. For example, South African consumers expect value added elements to processed foods like added health benefits or perceived "beauty" benefits. Exporters should keep in mind that much advanced food processing technology is far beyond the horizons of even the most richly resourced South African food company.

VIETNAM, July 2, 2004 -- As the peak harvest period (Vietnam's Mekong River Delta Summer-Autumn rice crop) starts in July, market observers expect export prices to fall slightly. The Vietnamese Government hopes to hit their 2004 rice export target of 3.5 million metric tons.

MEXICO, July 2, 2004 -- *MEXICO'S OFFICIAL STANDING ON POTENTIAL NEW DISCOVERY OF BSE IN THE UNITED STATES *ATO ORGANIZED U.S. PAVILION AT EXPHOTEL YIELDS OVER $5 MILLION IN PROJECTED SALES *THE UNITED STATES DELAYS ENTRY OF POULTRY PRODUCTS FROM MEXICO *THE U.S.-MEXICO DISPUTE ON FRUCTOSE CONTINUES *THE UNITED STATES REQUESTS TIME TO COMMENT ON MEXICO'S CORN CONTAMINATION *THE UNITED STATES IS WORRIED ABOUT CORN CONTAMINATION IN MEXICO *THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE ANNOUNCES A SUPPORT PROGRAM FOR YELLOW CORN