China to Dispute New Canadian Tariffs at WTO, Launches AD Probes

China will launch a dispute at the World Trade Organization in response to Canada’s decision to impose new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle, steel and aluminum imports (see 2408260033), the country’s commerce ministry said Sept. 3. The ministry also said it will begin separate antidumping duty investigations on imports of Canadian canola and certain chemicals after receiving requests for those probes from Chinese companies.

Canada’s tariffs, which include a 100% tariff on Chinese EVs starting Oct. 1, are “discriminatory unilateral restrictive measures,” a ministry spokesperson said, according to an unofficial translation. “China is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposes this, and intends to bring Canada's relevant practices to the WTO dispute settlement mechanism,” the spokesperson said, adding that Beijing will “take corresponding measures against Canada in the future based on the actual situation.”

The ministry also said imports of canola from Canada have “increased significantly” and the country suspects Canadian companies are dumping those goods in the Chinese market. It said its Canadian canola imports reached $3.47 billion in 2023, a year-on-year increase of 170%. “Affected by Canada's unfair competition, China's domestic canola-related industries continue to lose money,” the spokesperson said.

The person added that China also will begin an AD probe “on relevant Canadian chemical products based on domestic industry applications.”