|
Malmstrom, the European Trade Commissioner, tweeted that the
duties imposed by the United States were unjustified,
unwarranted and went against WTO rules.
"Tomorrow, we are taking this case to the WTO dispute settlement
system, requesting consultations with the U.S," the commissioner
said on Twitter.
"From the Commission side, we have already raised this case with
our U.S. counterparts at many occasions. Together with Spanish
authorities, we will continue to vigorously defend the interests
of EU producers," she continued.
U.S. imports of Spanish olives were worth $67.6 million in 2017.
The U.S. Commerce Department has concluded that Spanish olives
are being sold too cheaply and benefit from unfair subsidies. It
has imposed anti-subsidy tariffs of between 7.52 and 27.02
percent and anti-dumping duties of between 16.88 and 25.50
percent, according to the producer, to counteract this.
Under WTO rules, the two sides have 60 days to try to settle the
dispute, after which time the European Union could ask the WTO
to adjudicate.
But the WTO's dispute system is facing an imminent breakdown
because the United States is blocking appointments of judges to
hear trade dispute appeals. [nL8N1YM24Q]
Disputes filed now risk falling into legal limbo and may never
get resolved, unless an agreement can be found before two of the
three remaining appeal judges leave in December.
(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop. Editing by Jane Merriman)
[© 2019 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.] Copyright 2019 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
