WTO grants Hong Kong request to escalate dispute with US over ‘Made in China’ labelling

Name: Hong Kong is no longer autonomous from China, US determines
Uploaded: 2021-02-22T13:17:19.000Z
Duration: 1 min 56 s
Description: Hong Kong is no longer autonomous from China, US determines

Establishment of a dispute panel is the next step in Hong Kong’s challenge against a Trump-era order that forces the city’s locally made goods to be labelled ‘Made in China’

The panel must now be formed within a matter of weeks, with the US set to launch a defence on grounds of national security

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The WTO has granted Hong Kong’s second request to form a dispute panel against a Trump-era order that forces the city’s locally made goods to be labelled ‘Made in China’. Photo: AFP

Finbarr Bermingham

Published: 9:17pm, 22 Feb 2021Updated: 9:17pm, 22 Feb 2021

Hong Kong’s dispute with the United States over a “Made in China” labelling demand has taken an important step forward, after the city’s request to establish a disputes panel at the World Trade Organization (WTO) was granted.

Hong Kong made the request to the Geneva body in January, but it was blocked by the US. However, at a meeting of the organisation’s Dispute Settlement Body on Monday, a second request was granted, according to a Geneva trade official who was there.

It is common for recipients of complaints to reject panel formation requests at the WTO in the first instance, when they must pass by consensus, with defendants effectively holding veto power.

But in the second instance, the requirement is flipped, with unanimity against the panel’s formation required to block it.

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Hong Kong is no longer autonomous from China, US determines

At Monday’s meeting, Hong Kong representatives said that the labelling rule “is inconsistent with the WTO’s fundamental obligation to provide most favoured nation treatment to all members as well as various provisions” under WTO rules.