China has filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) against Canada, which imposed additional tariffs and import restrictions on Chinese-made steel products.
On August 16, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced in a statement posted on its website that it had filed a WTO complaint regarding Canada's import restrictions on products such as steel.
The Ministry of Commerce stated, "Canada has disregarded WTO regulations and announced steel tariff-rate quota (TRQ) measures, and has imposed discriminatory tariffs on products containing so-called 'Chinese steel components.' This constitutes a typical act of unilateralism and trade protectionism."
The ministry added, "China expresses strong dissatisfaction and firmly opposes these measures. We urge Canada to take immediate action to correct these wrongful practices."
Last month, Canada announced additional tariffs on Chinese steel, citing concerns that low-priced Chinese steel, displaced from the U.S. market due to high tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump administration, would flood into Canada and other third countries. Subsequently, Canada decided to impose an additional 25% tariff on all steel imports containing steel produced in China before the end of July.
In addition, for countries such as China that do not have a free trade agreement (FTA) with Canada, the tariff exemption quota was reduced from 100% to 50% of the previous year's import volume. Imports exceeding this quota are now subject to a 50% tariff.
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