WTO Members Pressure Argentina On Trade Policy

At the Council for Trade in Goods meeting on March 30, 2012, fourteen World Trade Organisation members jointly expressed their deepening concern about Argentina’s import-licensing measures, which were said to have significantly restricted trade flows.

The United States, also on behalf of 12 other members (Australia, the European Union, Israel, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Switzerland, Chinese Taipei, Thailand and Turkey), read a joint statement expressing deepening concerns regarding what it said were trade-restrictive measures taken by Argentina.

The statement said that since 2008, Argentina had greatly expanded the list of products subject to non-automatic import licensing requirements, including laptops, home appliances, air conditioners, tractors, machinery and tools, autos and auto parts, plastics, chemical, tyres, toys, footwear, textiles and apparel, luggage, bicycles and paper products. It said that in January 2012, Argentina announced regulations requiring pre-registration, review and approval of each and every import transaction. It said that these regulations were creating long delays and adding huge costs for many exporters.

The statement called for the removal of the trade restrictions, and said that members reserve their right to pursue the matter further. Mexico added itself to the statement noting that 'serious impact' the measures were having on Mexican exporters. China said that it hoped that the measures are only temporary as a large number of its exporters have also been affected. Chile, Colombia, Peru, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong, China also expressed concerns.

Argentina has maintained that the measures are compatible with the WTO, and rejected the joint statement as unjustified. The nation added that it had undertaken new measures to facilitate the processing of imports. It said that it had responded to these concerns in previous meetings of the Goods Council and the Import Licensing Committee. Argentina noted, as evidence that it had not been restricting imports, that its imports rose by 30% in 2011 - the highest increase among G-20 countries.

April 8, 2012

Source: Tax News