GENEVA: China must fall into line by July 31 with a World Trade Organisation order to change its restrictive policy on certain steel imports from the United States, an arbitrator said yesterday.
A WTO dispute settlement hearing decided that Beijing had failed to prove why it needed more time to adapt its rules in order to respect a decision handed down by global commerce’s rule-setting body in November.
In a ruling issued by the WTO, arbitrator Claus-Dieter Ehlermann said that he had decided that eight months was a reasonable period of time to take corrective action.
The dispute dates back to September 2010, when Washington accused China of breaching trade rules by not providing sufficient evidence that anti-dumping duties were needed on US imports of electrical steel used in the power sector.
Anti-dumping duties can be deployed by any WTO member if others in the 159-economy organisation sell cut-price products to grab market share.
But the rules are strict on proving that dumping has taken place, and Washington first won its case in June 2012, before a Chinese appeal failed.
Members found to be at fault are granted a period of grace to change their policy, but the defendant and plaintiff often have different views on what is reasonable, leading to yet another hearing. AFP
