USTR Says CVD on Canadian Supercalendered Paper Ended; Blasts WTO Outcome

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer on July 6 blasted a World Trade Organization ruling against U.S. countervailing duties on supercalendered paper from Canada (see 1807060024), saying Canada should have dropped the case because the Commerce Department will revoke the CV duty order. Lighthizer said Commerce terminated the CV duty order supercalendered paper on July 5, the same day as the WTO decision, at the request of the domestic manufacturer that originally requested the duties. No announcement from Commerce has yet been published.

"Canada has refused to drop this litigation," Lighthizer said in the statement. "In other words, Canada appears to be more interested in attacking our anti-subsidy laws than in resolving this particular dispute. By pursuing this litigation, Canada is helping non-market countries like China that are more likely to use the type of hidden subsidies at issue in this case. The end result of such policies will be a global trading system that encourages unfair subsidies and puts true market-oriented companies -- in both Canada and the United States -- at an unfair disadvantage." Lighthizer also called the panel report "the latest example of judicial activism at the WTO seeking to undermine [antidumping and countervailing duty] laws and make it harder for Members to address unfair trade." The Canadian embassy did not respond to Lighthizer's comments by press time.