MOFCOM says US probe is protectionism

China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Wednesday expressed “strong dissatisfaction” with US anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duty investigations into aluminum imports from China, saying that the US move is an example of protectionism.

As the two countries’ aluminum industries are complementary, the US move will harm the interests of both sides, Wang Hejun, head of MOFCOM’s trade remedy and investigation bureau, said in a statement posted on the ministry’s website.

China has urged the US to act in line with the Sino-US economic cooperation consensus to bring win-win results, and China will take measures to protect the legal rights of Chinese companies.

The US Commerce Department on Tuesday launched anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duty investigations into Chinese aluminum products using a rarely used “self-initiation” tactic, despite worries about potential harm to China-US trade ties.

The move to initiate the investigations marks the first time in decades that the US has launched such probes without being asked to do so by US companies or industries.

“An administration that initiates an investigation is sending an aggressive signal that it is eager to impose import protection,” said Chad Bown, a trade expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a US think tank.

A final decision on whether to impose punitive duties on Chinese aluminum products is still months away, as self-initiated investigations follow the same processes as normal trade cases.

The US International Trade Commission, another trade authority, will conduct its own investigations and make its preliminary determinations around January 16, 2018. If the agency determines that there has been no damage caused, then the Commerce Department investigations will be terminated.