WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The latest action challenges China’s use of tariff-rates and quotas to limit imports of rice, wheat and corn, which Washington claims violate WTO rules.
"China’s TRQ [tariff-rates and quotas] policies breach their WTO commitments and limit opportunities for US farmers to export competitively priced, high-quality grains to customers in China," US Trade Representative Michael Froman said in the release.
The new effort marks the 15th time the Obama administration has launched a trade enforcement challenge against the Chinese government at the WTO since 2009, the release noted.
The WTO sets trading rules for more than 160 member nations. China joined the organization in 2001.
The release cited a US Department of Agriculture estimate that China’s trade barriers cost American grain farmers about $3.5 billion in lost export sales in 2015.
