August 1, 2015
WTO entertains China's complaint on EU's 'high' poultry import tariff
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) will create a panel to hear China's complaint against the EU, which China claimed was imposing duties on Chinese poultry that are 40% higher than those for other countries, particularly Brazil and Thailand.
China has claimed that the higher tariffs violated Articles I, II, XIII and XXVIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 and that the EU allocated 96% of its low-tariff quota to Brazil and Thailand, leaving only 4% for China and the rest of the world. As a result, China said its poultry exports faced a tariff 40% higher than those of Brazil and Thailand, with which the EU signed quota treaties in 2012. The treaties took effect in March 2013.
When China lodged its protest before the WTO last April 8, Sun Jiwen, spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, said the treaties undermined the interests of Chinese poultry exporters, adding that the government's repeated calls for appropriate settlements weren't addressed.
He said then that China hoped that a settlement that protects the interests of the domestic industry would be reached.
The EU itself is mostly poultry self-sufficient, sourcing 61.3% of its poultry meat from the 28-nation bloc's leading meat producers: Poland, France, UK, Germany and Spain.
It imports high-value products including chicken breasts and cooked preparations from Brazil and Thailand.