Brussels, 30/01/2012 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 30 January, the appeals body of the WTO upheld the verdict returned by the WTO on 5 July 2011 on the basis of complaints brought by the US, Mexico and the EU (DS 394, 395 and 398) against China, over the country's restrictions on exports of raw materials, ruling that these were not justified by what China described as environmental protection or conservation policy grounds.
“This final decision is a great success in our efforts to guarantee fair access to the most vital raw materials for European industry. This decision confirms that the export restrictions applied by China on raw materials are incompatible with WTO rules, sending out a clear signal that measures of this kind cannot be used as protectionist tools to boost national industry at the expense of foreign competition”, commented Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht. “China must now comply with the WTO verdict by removing these restrictions as soon as possible. I also expect China to bring its export regime as a whole, including rare earth, into line with WTO rules”, he added.
The appeals body upheld the verdict of the WTO of 5 July, which found that the unilateral measures taken by China (export duty, export quotas and minimum export prices) to restrict its exports of nine raw materials (bauxite, coke, fluorspar, silicon carbide, magnesium, manganese, silicon, phosphorus and zinc) were incompatible with WTO rules. (EH/transl.fl)