Global News Of Note: WTO Says China May Impose Retaliatory Tariffs On United States

What happens abroad impacts MSCI members in North America. Here is the latest economic, trade, and other policy news of note for the last week:

• After finding that U.S. tariffs were based on claims of unfair state subsidies in 2008 were not in accordance with regulations, the World Trade Organization (WTO ruled last week that China may impose retaliatory tariffs worth $645 million on U.S. products. The Chinese government may now request formal WTO authorization to retaliate against U.S. goods and services, which could be granted as soon as next month. As Bloomberg explained, “The Biden administration could attempt to head off China’s WTO-authorized tariffs, but to do so it must revise U.S. countervailing duties, which would increase competition for key U.S. manufacturing sectors like steel and aluminum.” Read more here.
• As MarketWatch reported, the Chinese government will jail 47 steel company officials for faking air pollution data. The companies named in the cases were Tangshan Songting Iron and Steel Co., Hebei Xinda Iron and Steel Group Co., Tangshan Medium Thick Plate Co. and Tangshan Jinma Steel Group.
• The United Kingdom’s Trade Remedies Authority has announced that it is conducting a review of anti-dumping measures on Chinese heavy steel plate. The penalties were first put in place nearly six years ago by the European Union (EU) and applied through 2021. The tariffs are one of 44 trade measures carried over from Britain’s time in the EU. The TRA is now reviewing each of those penalties. Read more here.