South Korea grants China market economy status (Reuters) Updated: 2005-11-16 16:56
Chinese President Hu Jintao said on Wednesday that South Korea had granted
Beijing market economy status, a move that will give China greater protection
from anti-dumping duties on its exports.
Argentina and Brazil both recognised China, one of the world's top trading
nations, as a market economy last year but the European Union said as recently
as this month that it was not yet in a position to give a target date for
awarding the label.
"South Korea agreed to grant China a market economy status," Hu told a joint
news conference in Seoul with South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun.
Under the terms of China's 2001 accession to the World Trade Organisation,
members of the trade body can treat China as a "non-market economy" until 2016.
This allows them to use production costs in other countries to evaluate whether
Chinese imports are "dumped", or unfairly priced.
Beijing says this means it receives higher anti-dumping duties than if
Chinese costs were used in the evaluation.
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