A spokesperson of Chinese Ministry of Commerce said on Thursday that the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruling in China's dispute case against the US over the Inflation Reduction Act is objective and impartial, reflecting the basic consensus of WTO members, and slammed the US for attempting to justify its own treaty violations and for undermining the stability of global industrial and supply chains.

He Yadong, the spokesperson of the ministry, made the remarks in response to media inquiries after the Office of the US Trade Representative acknowledged that it had lost the WTO case brought by China over the Inflation Reduction Act, while at the same time criticizing the ruling as erroneous and claiming that it shows current WTO rules are unable to address the issue of overcapacity.

Regarding China's WTO dispute case against the US over the Inflation Reduction Act, He Yadong reiterated that the WTO dispute settlement panel has already issued an objective and impartial ruling, which reflects the basic consensus among WTO members.

As a member of the WTO, the US should respect the ruling and abide by the rules, the spokesperson said, noting that the existing WTO rules were jointly negotiated and agreed upon by participants in the Uruguay Round, including the US. As both a negotiating party and a signatory, the US has an obligation to comply with its international treaty commitments.

He Yadong said the relevant actions and remarks by the US are aimed at excusing its own violations of treaty obligations and abuse of subsidies and other protectionist practices, while attempting to shift the blame for insufficient industrial competitiveness and other domestic problems onto others. Such moves artificially interfere with and fragment global markets, undermining the stability of global industrial and supply chains, the spokesperson said.

"Such moves artificially interfere with and fragment global markets, undermining the stability of global industrial and supply chains," the spokesperson said.

The current international economic and trade order is facing severe shocks from unilateralism and protectionism, and safeguarding a multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core is the shared responsibility of all WTO members, according to He Yadong. "We urge the US side to earnestly respect WTO rulings, promptly correct practices that violate WTO rules, and uphold the rules-based multilateral trading order through concrete actions," the spokesperson noted.

In the face of heightened uncertainty and challenges, China has consistently upheld open cooperation based on mutual benefit in its external economic and trade engagement, according to the spokesperson.

"China will, as always, continue to act as a stabilizing anchor in a turbulent world, injecting greater stability and certainty into the global economy and helping steer international economic and trade cooperation toward steady and sustained progress," he added.

A WTO panel, which backed a complaint by China, ruled on Friday that the US' clean energy subsidy measures are inconsistent with WTO rules, and required the US side to withdraw the subsidies in question under the Inflation Reduction Act.

The WTO ruling against US subsidy measures is a reinforcement of the principle that no country should be above international rules, and that unilateral trade practices are bound to face justified consequences under the multilateral system, according to a Xinhua commentary.

Global Times