WTO Disputes

This may be a key issue in the U.S. - Clove Cigarettes case (DS406).  (See this link for some past posts on the case).  Briefly, the case is about whether the U.S. ban on clove cigarettes (produced mainly in Indonesia), but not menthol cigarettes (produced mainly in the U.

It appears that the Ukraine - Armenia dispute has been resolved: Citing the need to comply with international trading rules, the Armenian government pushed through parliament on Wednesday a bill setting a new regime of taxation for imported fuel, tobacco and alcohol. Importers of these products currently pay only fixed taxes

The two recent U.S. WTO complaints against China are here: China - Electronic Payment Services (DS413)China - AD/CVDs on Electrical Steel (DS414)President Obama had this to say on the issue of trade complaints against China in reponse to a question yesterday at a town hall: MR. HARWOOD: China.

Here's the latest WTO complaint, Canada - Certain Measures Affecting the Renewable Energy Generation Sector (DS412).  It is yet another trade and clean energy dispute, which seem to be proliferating these days. From the consultations request: The measures that are the subject of this request are those taken by

More on the substance of the dispute later (possibly much later -- it's a long report), but here's something interesting from today's Australia - Apples panel report: 6. Unsolicited letter from an Australian private entity 1.17 On 26 August 2008, the Panel received an unsolicited

This is from gambling writer Hartley Henderson: Consequently the following is my prediction with regards to the WTO issue and Antigua. The U.S. will remove its decision to rewrite its commitments, thereby eliminating the need to offer concessions. The country will provide opportunities for EU based companies to compete

It's always exciting for me to see a new consultations request posted on the WTO web site.  In addition to the substance, I like to see who the parties are.  It's great to find someone other than the usual suspects.  The latest request, in DS411, has

A couple weeks ago, former Appellate Body Member Jim Bacchus had an op-ed in the W$J, talking about China's export restrictions on raw materials: The international trading system is about to encounter an entirely new challenge. The global hunger for natural resources is inspiring a surge

The selection of WTO panelists is one of the least transparent parts of the WTO dispute process, and is rarely discussed publicly.  So, I thought these statements by a trade official might be of interest to readers who would like some insights into the process: THE PHILIPPINES has proposed criteria