China filed a complaint [materials] against the US with the World Trade Organization (WTO) [official website] on Thursday over US tariffs against Chinese goods.

The complaint is a request for consultation [press release], which is the first step in a dispute in the WTO. The US and China have 60 days to resolve the dispute. If an agreement can not be made during that time, then an adjudication by panel can be requested.

China’s complaint claims that the tariffs published by the United States on April 3 are “in excess of the United States’ bound rates in its Schedule of Concessions and Commitments annexed to the [General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade] 1994.” The complaint argues that the tariffs result in three separate violations. These violations include:

1. Article I.1 of the GATT 1994, because the measures at issue fail to extend immediately and unconditionally to China an “advantage, favour, privilege or immunity” granted by the United States “[w]ith respect to customs duties and charges of any kind imposed on or in connection with” the importation of products originating in the territory of other Members.
2. Article II.1(a) and (b) of the GATT 1994, because the measures at issue fail to accord to the products originating in China identified in the above mentioned documents the treatment no less favourable than that provided for in the United States’s Schedule of Concessions and Commitments annexed to the GATT 1994.
3. Article 23 of the DSU, because the measures at issue fail to recourse to, and abide by, the rules and procedures of the DSU, when the United States seek the redress of a violation of obligation or other nullification or impairment of benefits under the covered agreements or an impediment to the attainment of any objective of the covered agreements.

US President Donald Trump signed a memorandum [JURIST report] calling for tariffs against China in March. The announcement came two weeks after Trump imposed sanctions [JURIST report] against aluminum and steel imports.