China launches WTO dispute resolution case against US, EU

China has launched a dispute resolution case against US and EU at the World Trade Organisation regarding the surrogate country approach followed by the US and EU to calculate anti-dumping measures against exports from China. When China joined the WTO in 2001, it accepted to allow WTO members to treat it as a non-market economy to calculate anti-dumping duties for a period of 15 years. This was advantageous for its trade partners to use a third country’s prices to assess whether China was selling its goods below market value. This clause has expired on December 11, 2016. So, China has demanded all WTO members had an obligation to stop following the surrogate country approach. The US and EU have been some of the levellers of anti-dumping measures against Chinese exports. According to the China, these measures have seriously affected the exports and employment opportunities for Chinese firms. However, the US has said that the time was not ripe for it to change the way it evaluated whether China has achieved market economy status.