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Trade war looming as china rebukes us support for solar by ferujkll sdff
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Trade war looming as china rebukes us support for solar |
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Business,Business News,Business Opportunities
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China s allegation that renewable- energy subsidies in five US states violate free-trade rules ratchets up apotentially costly trade war between the world s two largesteconomies. It s a long, slow escalation of trade and currency wars as werace to the bottom, said Theodore O Neill, an analyst withWunderlich Securities of New York. Programs supporting renewable power, including wind and solar, inWashington state, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Ohioand California, violate World Trade Organization policies andtrade treaties, according to a preliminary finding of aninvestigation posted yesterday on the website ofChina s Ministry of Commerce. China filed a complaint today atthe WTO over US procedures for calculating anti-subsidy duties onimports. Those announcements followed a preliminary decision by the USCommerce Department last week to impose tariffs of as much as 250percent on imports of Chinese solar cells.
The agency said theunits were being sold for less than the cost of production in anattempt to drive out domestic competition. Both countries have identified renewable energy as a strategicallyimportant industry that could provide both jobs and clean power. Asa candidate, President Barack Obama campaigned in support of a green economy that would replace jobs lost in decliningsectors. Chinese complaints At least four US solar manufacturers filed for bankruptcy in thepast year even as federal subsidies helped build a $8.4 billion USsolar market.
China has been engaged in a trade war against the US interestsfor a number of years and only now are we calling them to thecarpet for their illegal and predatory trade practices, said MikeWessel, a member of the US-China Economic and Security ReviewCommission that reports to Congress. Chinese solar companies criticized Commerce s preliminary decisionMay 18 that they improperly benefit from government subsidies andsell solar cells below cost. High tariffs may raise costs, slowingdemand for polysilicon that s used to make solar panels, hurtingUS companies that reported $2.6 billion in exports in 2011,including about $700 million to China, according to a BloombergGovernment report released last week. Prohibited subsidies China initiated the investigation into US subsidies in November, amonth after seven US solar manufacturers filed their complaint withthe US International Trade Commission and Commerce.
In announcingthe preliminary findings yesterday, the Chinese Ministry ofCommerce said some US actions constitute prohibited subsidies. During the US investigation into whether Chinese companies receivedillegal government aid, the US acted inconsistently with WTOrules and rulings in many aspects, China s mission to the WTO inGeneva said today in an e-mailed statement. The US repeated itswrongful practice during its recent anti-subsidy investigation onChinese solar cells. China s official Xinhua News Agency reported yesterday that 14 ofChina s solar-panel companies have formed an alliance in responseto the trade issues with the US.
Nkenge Harmon, a spokeswoman for the US Trade Representative soffice, defended the US procedures for so- called countervailingduties today, and said the government is committed to defendingthose remedies. Strongly supports The Obama administration strongly supports the trade remedy laws,and was the first administration ever to apply a China-specificsafeguard on imports from that nation, she said in an e-mail. The US is also jousting with China over access for productsincluding steel pipes, poultry, tires and music. Along with theEuropean Union and Japan, the US filed a complaint in March withthe World Trade Organization challenging the Asian nation sexport limits on rare-earth minerals.
China s recent investigation of US practices demonstrates thedangers of imposing unilateral trade barriers and how politicaltension can quickly lead to a full blown trade war, Jigar Shah,president of the Coalition for Affordable Solar Energy, whichopposes the US tariffs, said in an e-mail. Additionally, the Commerce Department is scheduled to announce onMay 30 how much in tariffs Chinese companies should pay overallegations their wind-tower exports receive unfair governmentsubsidies. The US imports $103.6 million in wind tower partsannually from China, according to papers filed with theInternational Trade Commission. Slap back As US politicians complain of the trade deficit with China, thecountry may take further actions in an effort to narrow the gapbefore the November election, said Robert Kapp, 1994-2004 presidentof the US-China Business Council.
That will result in China looking for opportunities to slap back, he said. All countries offer subsidies to certain industries, Hari ChandraPolavarapu, an analyst at Auriga USA LLC in New York, said in atelephone interview. The absurdity is the scope and depth of the subsidies in China, Polavarapu said. You re competing against a sovereign whenyou re talking about the Chinese solar industry. It s economicwarfare.
The US unit of SolarWorld AG, which brought the complaint, saidit was responding to thousands of job losses due to Chinese tradepractices. The company shouldn t be blamed for any trade war,SolarWorld said in a statement. China s tactic of retaliation rather than following the rule oflaw is extremely disturbing and is yet another example of theChinese inappropriately attempting to influence USinvestigations, Timothy Brightbill, an attorney for SolarWorldsaid in an e-mailed statement. The Commerce Department is scheduled to make its finaldetermination on the solar tariffs in early October. With theelection weeks later, the US and China may continue to antagonizeeach other, said Kelly Dougherty, an analyst with New York-basedMacquarie Capital USA Inc.
The louder the US or SolarWorld is, the louder China is going tobe, she said. I am a professional writer from Computer Connectors, which contains a great deal of information about car travel organizer , car cd organizer, welcome to visit!
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