SIMIC

According to Taiwan's finance ministry, Chinese customs authorities "suddenly suspended" imports of certain alcoholic beverages from the island last Friday.

It said the move was related to a regulation Beijing imposed on January 1 that requires all food and alcoholic beverage exporters to the mainland to be registered with Chinese customs. Some Taiwanese companies had still been under review, reports Bloomberg.

Premier Su accused Beijing of violating World Trade Organization norms by "making its own rules" and "meddling in trade through administrative means".

China "is especially tough on Taiwan and especially discriminates against Taiwan. They've asked Taiwan to do this and do that," he told reporters.

Taiwan plans to appeal to the WTO and will assist the affected businesses, he added.

China slapped fresh bans on certain fruit and fish imports in retaliation for US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei in August, which prompted a furious response from Beijing and a flurry of military drills.

A year earlier, pineapple imports were halted after Chinese authorities claimed to have discovered pests in shipments, just as the annual harvest was under way.

According to Taiwan's semi-official Central News Agency, 11 out of 28 beer and distillery products registered by Taiwanese exporters had been suspended, citing Chinese Customs.

The affected companies include state-run Taiwan Tobacco & Liquor Corp.

Shipments of 123 out of 354 other beverage items have also been halted, including those from Taiwanese food giant Uni-President Enterprises, the report said.