September 15, 2007	Saturday	Ramazan 2, 1428

BEIJING, Sept 14: China on Friday demanded consultations with the United States at the World Trade Organisation over a dispute involving coated paper, the commerce ministry said.The demand was in response to US anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigations into coated or glossy paper imported from China.

Coated paper is widely used in the publishing industry as it offers sharper and brighter images and has better reflectivity than uncoated paper.

The ministry said China’s delegation to the world trade body asked for consultations in a letter delivered to the US delegation in Geneva on Friday.

According to WTO officials in Geneva, the request for consultations means the two sides will have two months to try to settle the dispute bilaterally.

If no resolution is reached, WTO arbitrators will make a ruling which could take up to six months to reach and can be appealed by either side, they said.

The demand for consultations comes amid a growing trade rift between China and the US, with Beijing increasingly showing its anger over a series of anti-dumping and anti-subsidy protests lodged by Washington at the WTO.

Since November last year, the US has brought five Chinese products up for investigation before the WTO that also include steel pipe and tyres.

Chinese officials said the investigations are targetting up to $850 million worth of exports.

“Recently, the United States has carried out a series of measures with a distinct protectionist flavour,” assistant commerce minister Wang Chao said late last month.

“It’s also fair to say that they have not given full consideration to Chinese requests for consultations.” Trade tensions have further heightened amid a spate of safety scandals surrounding Chinese exports to the United States and elsewhere -- ranging from toys and tyres to seafood and toothpaste.—AFP