Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP9217
Authors: Steve Charnovitz; Bernard Hoekman
Abstract: In 2009, the United States imposed additional tariffs for a three-year period on imports of automotive tires from China under a special-safeguard provision included in China?s Protocol of Accession to the WTO. China challenged the measure in the WTO. The case marked the first WTO dispute in which a challenged safeguard was upheld by the Appellate Body; the first in which an accession protocol was used successfully as a defense; and the first that China lost as a complaining party. It also was noteworthy in that the safeguard was sought by a labor union, and not the domestic industry. This paper reviews the WTO Appellate Body?s findings and discusses a number of the legal and policy implications regarding China?s Accession Protocol, the Safeguards Agreement, and WTO accession law, as well as economic aspects of the case.
Keywords: Accession; Adjustment; China; Globalization; Safeguards; Trade Disputes; WTO
JEL Codes: F13; F51
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Imposition of tariffs on Chinese tires (F18) | Material injury to the U.S. tire industry (L62) |
| Imposition of tariffs on Chinese tires (F18) | Competitive position of the domestic industry (L11) |
| Tariffs (F19) | Job preservation in the U.S. tire industry (L62) |
| Tariffs (F19) | Net job recovery in the U.S. tire industry (J65) |
| Tariffs (F19) | Mixed economic outcomes in the U.S. tire industry (F61) |
| Safeguard measures (D18) | Legal precedent in WTO (F13) |