Outgoing Obama cranks up pressure on China with WT0 aluminium complaint
Washington — The Obama administration has launched a new complaint against Chinese aluminium subsidies at the World Trade Organisation, accusing Beijing of artificially growing global market share with cheap state-directed loans and subsidised energy. The complaint will stoke already high trade tension between the world’s two largest economies with incoming president Donald Trump taking office next week vowing to cut the US-China trade deficit as a priority. The US trade representative’s office said on Thursday the complaint claimed China’s actions in the aluminium sector violated the WTO’s ban on subsidies that cause "serious prejudice" to other members of the trade body. The complaint says "artificially cheap" state-directed loans and coal, electricity and alumina for the Chinese aluminium sector undercuts global prices and artificially expands China’s market share. "China gives its aluminum industry an unfair advantage through underpriced loans and other illegal government subsid...
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