The National People's Congress (NPC) passed a draft amendment to China's Foreign Trade Law that will go into effect on July 1. The amendment's passage ended a two-year review of China's foreign trade-related laws aimed at ensuring that the laws were consistent with China's obligations under the World Trade Organization. The amendment allows individuals to be foreign trade operators. It also allows registered foreign trade operators to conduct import and export of goods and technology without seeking administrative approval. Some restrictions on the trade of products that had been previously reserved for state-owned enterprises such as petroleum, grain, fertilizer, cotton, sugar and food oils were also lifted.