China Appeals WTO Section 232 Ruling
Last week, the Chinese government filed an appeal with the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding an expert panel report on the Chinese government’s countermeasures against U.S. Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
As Connecting the Dots reported at the time, that WTO report found China had acted inconsistently with its WTO obligations by imposing additional duties on U.S. goods in response to U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. Specifically, the WTO panel found China’s tariffs breached the WTO’s “most favored nation” principle, which mandates WTO members must treat each other impartially or offer trade concessions as compensation. The three-person panel also recognized that the United States was aiming to protect its national security interests when it imposed the Section 232 duties.
The Chinese government disagreed and argued the WTO’s August ruling contained legal errors. It also said the imposition of U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports was “unilateral and protectionist measure that had been found to violate WTO rules.”
Connecting the Dots will continue to report on this challenge as more information becomes available.
As a reminder, however, when it comes to the Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs, Connecting the Dots is reporting this development for members’ information only.
MSCI consistently has argued that global overcapacity and other unfair trading practices, particularly by China, have harmed the U.S. steel and aluminum markets. To address this circumvention, MSCI has advised federal officials to provide relief for producers up and down the supply chain and to consider the consequences of any new trade policy, including: the economic impact of global overcapacity on the entire domestic metals supply chain; transition times and implementation rules to any new policy; availability of domestic metals to meet U.S. national security needs, as well as general industrial and consumer demand; and trade flows under current free trade agreements, including the United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA). MSCI also asked that Canada and Mexico be excluded from any trade penalties.
Click here to review all of MSCI’s advocacy on Section 232 tariffs.