China files case with WTO over U.S.'s 'zeroing'

25/07/2011 12:00 - 380 Views

BEIJING (MarketWatch) -- China has filed a case with the World Trade Organization protesting a particular calculation method used by the U.S. in anti-dumping cases.
China is protesting the practice of "zeroing," which involves calculating damages by including those imports priced below domestic prices, but excluding those above.
A statement from China's Commerce Ministry Friday specifically complained over U.S. use of "zeroing" in two anti-dumping cases: for shrimp and diamond saw blades imported from China.

Chinese exporters have brought a case in U.S. courts against the use of "zeroing" in shrimp shipments, but they lost a final appeal in 2010.

The practice has long been a point of contention between the U.S. and trading partners. The EU, Japan and other countries have successfully challenged the practice at the WTO.

Since early 2007, the U.S. has stopped the practice in calculating new penalties, and now weighs the dumped goods against high-priced imports from the same country.
But the practice of "zeroing" has continued in reviews of whether to keep existing duties in place, despite several WTO rulings against the U.S.

July 22, 2011, 9:39 a.m. EDT
Source: marketwatch.com