Japan seeks WTO help against China's anti-dumping duties: 'It defies international rules'

Japan has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) over China's anti-dumping duties on their stainless steel products, saying that the tariffs of up to 29 per cent violate international trade rules. On June 11, Japan initiated a request for consultations with China under the WTO Agreement regarding China's measure imposing anti-dumping duties on stainless steel products, which has been in place since July 2019. 

What Are Anti-Dumping Duties?

An anti-dumping duty is a protectionist tariff (policy of protecting domestic industries against foreign competition) that a domestic government imposes on foreign imports that it believes are priced below the fair market value. Whereas, Dumping is a process wherein a company exports a product at a price that is significantly lower than its price charged in its home market. Contextually, in the long term, anti-dumping duties could reduce the international competition of domestic companies producing similar goods and products. 

The WTO deals with the rules of trade between nations, including the international regulation of anti-dumping measures. 

Japan-China Anti-Dumping Duties

In July 2019, China started imposing anti-dumping (AD) duties on stainless steel products imported from Japan, the Republic of Korea, Indonesia and the EU, claiming that its domestic industry was being injured by the dumped imports of such products. According to the country's Economy and Trade Ministry, Japan considers AD measure to be inconsistent with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 due to flaws in the Chinese authorities' determination and its investigation procedures.

Now Japan has repeatedly asked China to abolish the AD measure at the WTO and in bilateral meetings too but has failed to resolve the matter at hand. Therefore, it has requested consultations under the WTO agreement. 

As recorded in 2019, the total value of exports of stainless steel from Japan to China is approximately 70 billion yen per year, of which exports of the products subject to the AD measure account for approximately 9.2 billion yen.