DS: China — Measures Concerning Trade in Goods

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Current status

 

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Key facts

 

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Latest document

  

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Summary of the dispute to date

The summary below was up-to-date at

Consultations

Complaint by the European Union

On 27 January 2022, the European Union requested consultations with China with regard to measures allegedly imposed by or attributable to China on the importation of goods from, and exportation of goods to, the European Union and on trade in services between the European Union and China.

The European Union claimed that the measure or series of measures at issue appear to be inconsistent with:

• Articles I:1, V:6, X:3(a), XI:1, and XVII of the GATT 1994;
   
• Article 1.2 of China's Accession Protocol, in conjunction with paragraphs 46 and 342 of the Report of the Working Party on the Accession of China;
   
• Articles 7 and 10 of the Trade Facilitation Agreement;
   
• Articles 2 and 8 and paragraph 1(a) of Annex C of the SPS Agreement; and
   
• Articles II:1, VIII, XI:1, XVI, and XVII:1 of the GATS.

On 8 February 2022, Australia requested to join the consultations. On 9 February 2022, Chinese Taipei requested to join the consultations. On 10 February 2022, Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States requested to join the consultations.

 

Panel and Appellate Body proceedings

On 7 December 2022, the European Union requested the establishment of a panel. At its meeting on 20 December 2022, the DSB deferred the establishment of the panel.

At its meeting on 27 January 2023, the DSB established a panel. Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Norway, the Russian Federation, Switzerland, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Türkiye, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Viet Nam reserved their third-party rights.

During the composition process, the parties agreed on the nominations of two members of the panel, but could not agree on the third member. On 4 April 2023, the European Union requested the Director-General to compose the panel. On 18 April 2023, the Director-General determined the composition of the panel, including the two members whose nominations were agreed by the parties.

On 4 July 2023, the European Union and China informed the DSB that they had agreed to Procedures for Arbitration under Article 25 of the DSU in this dispute. Such procedures were entered into by the European Union and China to give effect to the communication JOB/DSB/1/Add.12 (“Multi-Party Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement Pursuant to Article 25 of the DSU (MPIA)”) and with the objective of setting a framework for an Arbitrator to decide on any appeal from any final panel report issued in this dispute, if the Appellate Body is not able to hear such an appeal under Articles 16.4 and 17 of the DSU.

On 13 October 2023, the Chair of the panel informed the DSB that, in the light of the complexity of the issues presented in this dispute, in particular an extensive preliminary ruling request and the parties' requests for additional time to prepare their submissions, the panel estimated that it would issue its final report to the parties not before the second half of 2024. The Chair apprised the DSB that the report would be available to the public once it was circulated to the Members in all three official languages, and that the date of circulation depended on completion of translation.