U.S. ANTIDUMPING RULES TO REMAIN HOT-BUTTON ISSUE AT WTO

U.S. ANTIDUMPING RULES TO REMAIN HOT-BUTTON ISSUE AT WTO    Antidumping regulations have long been used by the United States to protect its long-time domestic industries from lower priced imports, but this regulatory tool may be turned more against U.S. trade in the future.
   “Antidumping is becoming an increasingly popular weapon for countries around the world,” said Jeffrey A. Bader, assistant to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative at the American Association of Exporters and Importers’ meeting at Manhattan Beach, Calif. Monday.
   At the recent World Trade Organization ministerial meeting in Doha, the United States was on the defensive on antidumping statutes. Chile, Japan and South Korea were the most vocal opponents of the application of U.S. antidumping regulations, Bader said.
   Bader added the United States agreed that there needs to be more talks between WTO nations about antidumping rules in the next few years. In some countries, the use of antidumping measures has taken off. Mexico, for example, has already established antidumping measures against about 1,000 Chinese imports.
   AAEI leadership agrees that something should be done. “We need to take a closer look at our so-called fair trade laws,” said John P. Simpson, president of the Washington-based AAEI. “Otherwise they’re going to blow up in our faces. The more competitive our businesses become overseas, the more we risk becoming targets of other countries’ antidumping rules.”
   Simpson vowed to the AAEI meeting attendees that the association would take an active role on Capitol Hill and in the administration to develop better controls for how and when antidumping rules are applied to U.S. imports.