US to levy punitive duties on China's solar products

A US trade panel has ruled that imports of solar products from China and Taiwan harm manufacturers in America, triggering sharp reaction from Beijing which said any decision to impose duties on the renewable-energy components will have global repercussions.
The US International Trade Commission's (ITC) decision yesterday is the final step for imposing dumping and anti-subsidy duties on the products.
As a result of the ITC's affirmative determinations, the US Department of Commerce will issue countervailing duty orders on imports of these products from Chinese mainland and anti-dumping duty orders on imports of these products from Chinese mainland and Taiwan, said the ITC in a final ruling, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Last month, the Commerce Department announced its final determination that these products from Chinese mainland and Taiwan had been sold in the United States at dumping margins ranging from 26.71 per cent to 165.04 per cent, and 11.45 per cent to 27.55 per cent, respectively.
The department also determined that producers and exporters of photovoltaic products from Chinese mainland received subsidies ranging from 27.64 per cent to 49.79 per cent.
It was the latest US action against Chinese solar products after a similar one in 2011, which seriously affected the Chinese photovoltaic industry and hindered the development of US photovoltaic application market.

China's Ministry of Commerce has reiterated its calls for the United States to objectively and fairly handle ongoing solar trade disputes, honour its commitment against protectionism and work with China to maintain a free, open and just trade environment.

The Commerce Ministry in a statement today said that US trade panel's move to impose import duties on solar products made in China and Taiwan will cause "serious harm" and will have global repercussions.
"The US side's findings ignore the facts and legal regulations," the Commerce Ministry said in the statement posted on its website.
It said that the move is "a breach by the US of its obligation to comply with World Trade Organisation rules."

"The abuse by the United States of trade remedy measures causes serious harm to Chinese companies as well as to the interests of US consumers and industry," it said.
The Commerce Ministry added that China "will consider working within the WTO framework as well as the American judicial system to exercise its rights and protect its own interests".