WTO releases new panel reports against legality of US CVD orders
Regarding the ongoing investigations on the US laws and the countervailing duty implementations on eight formerly state-owned steelmakers of the EU, World Trade Organisation (WTO) has released two panel reports today. The subject of the case was the dispute arising from the argument whether the privatised European producers benefited from the previous financial contributions granted to the state-owned producers. According to the US regulations, DOC imposed countervailing duties on these formerly state-owned companies in order to compensate the previously granted government subsidies. EU claims that certain aspects of the US anti-subsidy trade laws are contradicting the international WTO rules and Subsidies Agreement. WTO previously approved a panel report that US violated the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing measures by imposing and maintaining the countervailing duties on steel products imported from the privatised EU steel companies. The panel reports of yesterday's release make a final conclusion that the US laws on imposition of countervailing duties on privatized foreign steel companies are incompatible with WTO rules. The first panel report relates to countervailing measures implemented on European steelmakers that the US alleged they have received state-aid granted prior to privatization. The second panel found that the United States did not apply the de minimis rule in its sunset review of a case concerning German corrosion resistant steel. De minimis rule recalls subsidies of less than 1 % to be presumed not to cause injury The companies subject to such dispute were Usinor of France, Corus (formerly British Steel) of UK, Accai Speciali Terni (AST), Cogne Accaiai Speciali (Cogne) and Ilva of Italy, SSAB Sventskt Stal (SSAB) of Sweden, Dillinger Huttenwerke Saarstahl (Dillinger) of Germany and Aceralia of Spain.With this final ruling, WTO has prohibited the duties that the US imposed on these companies.