China welcomes WTO ruling on Sino-US steel dispute

BEIJING - China welcomes the decision of the World Trade Organization to rule in China's favor over duties China imposed on US steel exports, the Ministry of Commerce said Saturday.

The WTO panel supported China's claims and ruled that China's trade remedy measures complied with WTO rules in some areas, such as in the subsidy calculation methodology and on the disclosure of subsidies concerning government procurement, the ministry said in a statement posted on its website.

China imposed countervailing and anti-dumping duties in April 2010 on US steel products. The punitive duties were imposed after domestic steel makers, including Baosteel Group and Wuhan Iron and Steel Group, complained about imports from the United States.

On Sept 15, 2010, the US filed the case to WTO and requested a consultation with China. The US requested the establishment of a panel on February 11, 2011, which then was established on March 25, 2011.

The product, grain oriented flat-rolled electrical steel, is mainly used in the manufacturing of transformers, reactors and generators.