US appeals WTO ruling on its multi-billion tariffs on China

October 27, 2020 00:00:00

The US and China have been engaged in a tit-for-tat trade dispute, with Washington complaining about the huge imbalance in favor of Beijing — AFP

GENEVA, Oct 26 (Arab News): The United States lodged an appeal on Monday against a WTO ruling last month that found US tariffs imposed on China in 2018 breached global trade rules, a World Trade Organisation (WTO) official said.

A three-person panel had ruled that Washington had not justified why the tariffs imposed after a Section 301 investigation against China were a justifiable exception to its obligations.

The US delegation, in a speech seen by Reuters announcing its appeal, said that the panel report "reflects a major, missed opportunity for the WTO to begin to address the most serious problem faced by every member that seeks a balanced and fair world trading system: namely, aggressive, state policies that seek to dominate broad industrial sectors."