TATTLETALE

China Reports Trump’s Tariffs on Solar Panels to the WTO

A 30% tariff was slapped on Chinese solar panels in January.

China has reported Donald Trump’s tariff hike on solar panels to the World Trade Organization [WTO] in the latest escalation of the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies. The U.S. announced 30 percent tariffs in January, but China says they unfairly boost U.S. producers. Beijing’s commerce ministry said a formal complaint was filed Tuesday with the WTO in Geneva. The solar duties are separate from tariff hikes imposed by the Trump administration in July—they also apply to imports of solar modules from Europe, Canada, Mexico, and South Korea—so the action may win support from U.S. allies. The Trump administration said the tariffs are necessary to protect American producers. The U.S. solar action “seriously damaged China’s trade interests” and “also affects the seriousness and authority of WTO rules,” said a commerce ministry statement.