WTO ready to investigate China’s ‘rare earth’ policies

Agence France Press is reporting that the World Trade Organization is ready to take the next step on the  complaint by the United States, Japan, and the European Union that China has imposed illegal export restraints on its "rare earth" minerals: The World Trade Organization (WTO) is to investigate China’s export restrictions on rare earths, ...

By , a professor at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies.

Agence France Press is reporting that the World Trade Organization is ready to take the next step on the  complaint by the United States, Japan, and the European Union that China has imposed illegal export restraints on its "rare earth" minerals:

Agence France Press is reporting that the World Trade Organization is ready to take the next step on the  complaint by the United States, Japan, and the European Union that China has imposed illegal export restraints on its "rare earth" minerals:

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is to investigate China’s export restrictions on rare earths, a source close to the organization said on Monday.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the trade arbiter’s Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) after a request by the European Union, the United States and Japan.

To encourage negotiations, WTO rules require a consultation period of up to sixty days between the time of a complaint and the formation of a panel to investigate the dispute. 

David Bosco is a professor at Indiana University’s Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies. He is the author of The Poseidon Project: The Struggle to Govern the World’s Oceans. Twitter: @multilateralist

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