Member countries raised concern over the decision at the informal ministerial meeting of the WTO.
As several countries raise concern over the decision of the US to impose an import duty on steel and aluminum, India’s trade and commerce minister Suresh Prabhu said that the issue would be raised in talks with America.
India will take up the matter with the US authorities though India is not a major exporter of steel and aluminum to the US, Prabhu said after the conclusion of the informal ministerial meeting of the WTO hosted by India.
Prabhu said that the unilateral actions taken by the member countries will “harm everybody” and “therefore we must ensure that we keep the global trade growing.”
The minister also added that the US was bound to follow the rules of the WTO.
The imposition of import duty on steel and aluminum by the Trump administration was an important issue raised by the members of the WTO in the informal meeting. The members pointed out the possibility of such decisions escalating into trade wars.
In this regard, WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said the member countries should avoid following such protectionist measures. “These measures, for whatever reasons, they have a very real potential for escalation because of the possibility of responses from other partners with trade restrictive measures as well. And I think is something we should avoid and that is what we heard today,” Azevedo was quoted as saying by Press Trust of India (PTI).
Though the decision of the US may not have a huge impact on India, the Indian Government is looking for legal options to seek the help of the WTO’s dispute settlement body to counter the move.
The commerce and industry department has held consultations with experts including former officials who have experience in dealing with WTO regarding the issue. The government is fearful of the possibility of spreading imposing similar import control measures in other areas also.
Along with other countries, global agencies have also warned against imposing such trade protection measures. S&P Global Ratings has said that the US decision may invite retaliatory action from the EU and China leading to a global trade war resulting in reduced global economic growth.
President Trump imposed 25 percent import tariff on steel and 10 percent on aluminum to protect the domestic producers, earlier this month.
While the member countries questioned the decision of the US to impose import duty, Washington has questioned the way in which the WTO is functioning and called for reforms.