Istanbul, February 13 () - The United States notified the WTO Secretariat of a request for consultations with China regarding certain measures that allegedly provide export-contingent subsidies to enterprises in several industrial sectors.
These sectors include textiles, agriculture, medical products, light industry, special chemical engineering, new materials, and hardware and building materials, World Trade Organisation (WTO) said in a statement.
According to the US, China designates a cluster of enterprises in a particular industry as a Demonstration Base and then provides export-contingent subsidies to those enterprises. In addition, the US argued that China provides certain other export-contingent subsidies to Chinese manufacturers, producers, and farmers.
The request for consultations formally initiates a dispute in the WTO. Consultations give the parties an opportunity to discuss the matter and to find a satisfactory solution without proceeding further with litigation. After 60 days, if consultations have failed to resolve the dispute, the complainant may request adjudication by a panel.
