On Tuesday, January 20, the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed to rule on a complaint by China that US duties against imports of several Chinese products including steel pipes are in contravention of global trade rules.
The WTO's dispute settlement body has decided to establish a panel to judge the complaint, in the first case that China has pushed to a dispute panel on its own initiative since it joined the WTO in 2001. The case is the third case overall that China has taken against the US at the WTO.
China is particularly disturbed by a US decision in 2007 to change its methodology in subsidy investigations, which has led to the imposition of duties against Chinese businesses. The US, classifying China as a "non-market economy", had previously confined punitive measures against Chinese imports to antidumping duties.
According to WTO rules, the panel should issue its decision towards the end of this year, though procedural delays and subsequent appeals are likely to postpone a final verdict to 2010.