India&#39;s solar industry suffered a setback on Friday, when it lost its appeal at the World Trade Organisation in a dispute over solar power.&nbsp; 
 
India failed to overturn a US complaint that New Delhi had discriminated against importers in the Indian solar power sector. 
 
The appellate body of the WTO upheld an earlier ruling that India violated global trade rules by imposing mandatory local content requirements on solar power developers. 
 
The earlier panel said India had favoured domestic products over imported products, in violation of the national treatment provisions under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994. 
 
In 2013, a settlement panel of WTO ruled in favour of the US terming the requirement a violation of norms for fair trade.&nbsp; 
 
But India argued that the panel had failed to consider that solar cells and modules are indistinguishable from solar power generation and therefore, it is not necessary to consider these two products as inputs for solar power generation.&nbsp; 
 
The solar tariff has fallen below Rs 4 per unit in the latest auctions, probably among the lowest in the world. 
 
The low tariff provides India with a global business opportunity. It can provide cheaper solar energy while giving a push to domestic manufacturers through domestic content requirement. 
 
But with the unfavourable WTO ruling, India will now be expected to bring its laws into compliance with the WTO rules. 
 
(WION with inputs from agencies) 
 
&nbsp;

The World Trade Organisation upheld earlier ruling that India had discriminated against US importers in solar power sector

India's solar industry suffered a setback on Friday, when it lost its appeal at the World Trade Organisation in a dispute over solar power. India failed to overturn a US complaint that New Delhi had discriminated against importers in the Indian solar power sector. The appellate body of the WTO upheld an earlier ruling that India violated global trade rules by imposing mandatory local content requirements on solar power developers. The earlier panel said India had favoured domestic products over imported products, in violation of the national treatment provisions under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) 1994. In 2013, a settlement panel of WTO ruled in favour of the US terming the requirement a violation of norms for fair trade. But India argued that the panel had failed to consider that solar cells and modules are indistinguishable from solar power generation and therefore, it is not necessary to consider these two products as inputs for solar power generation. The solar tariff has fallen below Rs 4 per unit in the latest auctions, probably among the lowest in the world. The low tariff provides India with a global business opportunity. It can provide cheaper solar energy while giving a push to domestic manufacturers through domestic content requirement. But with the unfavourable WTO ruling, India will now be expected to bring its laws into compliance with the WTO rules. (WION with inputs from agencies)

WTO rejects India's appeal in US solar dispute; India could be forced to change existing laws

The head of the World Trade Organization said on Wednesday he would not get involved in a slanging match with Donald Trump after the US presidential candidate suggested withdrawing from the WTO. 
 
Trump, having earlier threatened to renegotiate or rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement, told NBC on Sunday that if he takes the White House he might &quot;renegotiate or pull out&quot; of trade deals if the WTO challenges his policies. 
 
Republican Trump added that &quot;These trade deals are a disaster ... (the) World Trade Organization is a disaster,&quot; insisting he would not let the WTO override his plans to impose punitive taxes on firms which shift production offshore. 
 
But the WTO&#39;s director general Roberto Azevedo said he would not rise to the bait. 
 
&quot;I do not intend to open a discussion on this subject -- as I am not a (presidential) candidate,&quot; Azevedo told a news conference in Geneva. 
 
&quot;Everybody knows what I think of the WTO and its importance for international trade and job creation,&quot; the Brazilian added, saying he would put himself forward for a second term at the head of the body after his first ends in September next year. 
 
In May, Trump raised eyebrows when he slammed China on trade, blaming the Asian behemoth for weakening the US economy and taking American jobs. 
 
&quot;We can&#39;t continue to allow China to rape our country, and that&#39;s what we&#39;re doing, Trump told a campaign rally, insisting that the United States had &quot;a lot of power with China.&quot; 
 
(AFP) 
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Trump told NBC that if he takes the White House he might "renegotiate or pull out" of trade deals if the WTO challenges his policies

The head of the World Trade Organization said on Wednesday he would not get involved in a slanging match with Donald Trump after the US presidential candidate suggested withdrawing from the WTO. Trump, having earlier threatened to renegotiate or rip up the North American Free Trade Agreement, told NBC on Sunday that if he takes the White House he might "renegotiate or pull out" of trade deals if the WTO challenges his policies. Republican Trump added that "These trade deals are a disaster ... (the) World Trade Organization is a disaster," insisting he would not let the WTO override his plans to impose punitive taxes on firms which shift production offshore. But the WTO's director general Roberto Azevedo said he would not rise to the bait. "I do not intend to open a discussion on this subject -- as I am not a (presidential) candidate," Azevedo told a news conference in Geneva. "Everybody knows what I think of the WTO and its importance for international trade and job creation," the Brazilian added, saying he would put himself forward for a second term at the head of the body after his first ends in September next year. In May, Trump raised eyebrows when he slammed China on trade, blaming the Asian behemoth for weakening the US economy and taking American jobs. "We can't continue to allow China to rape our country, and that's what we're doing, Trump told a campaign rally, insisting that the United States had "a lot of power with China." (AFP)

WTO says won't take Trump pullout bait

The world`s top 20 economies will work to boost sluggish global trade despite growing protectionism, overcapacity concerns, and uncertainty over Brexit, G20 trade ministers said today at a meeting in Shanghai. 
 
&quot;The global recovery continues, but it remains uneven and falls short of our ambition for strong, sustainable and balanced growth. Downside risks and vulnerabilities persist,&quot; the trade ministers said in a joint statement, adding that trade should remain &quot;an important engine&quot; to spur global growth. 
 
Protectionism has been rising, G20 nations acknowledge&nbsp; 
 
The G20 nations, which account for 85 per cent of global trade, admitted that protectionism has been rising since the financial crisis, and said that new trade restrictions in the group had reached the highest monthly average registered since the&nbsp;World Trade Organisation (WTO) began monitoring in 2009. 
 
&quot;We note with concern that despite the G20&#39;s repeated pledge, the stock of restrictive measure affecting trade in goods and services has continued to rise,&quot; they said in the statement. 
 
Ahead of the meeting, WTO chief economist Robert Koopman warned that restrictive measures could affect industries including air freight cargo, sea based cargo, automobile sales and production, electronics trade, and agricultural raw materials. 
 
The world&#39;s leading economies over the weekend pledged to oppose trade protectionism and reiterated a promise not to add new protective measures until 2018. 
 
Global trade governance to be improve to combat slowdown 
 
Pertinent to mention that global trade is expected to grow at a tepid 2.8 per cent in 2016, the WTO had said in April. 
 
And this year is expected to be the fifth in a row where trade grew at less than three per cent, its weakest sustained level in 30 years, WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said on Friday ahead of the talks. 
 
To combat the global slowdown, the ministers said they agreed to improve global trade governance and to work towards easing and liberalising trade.Concerns over China&#39;s production overcapacity in steel have led to trade disputes with the EU and US, and China`s vice commerce minister Wang Shouwen said today that the G20 economies &quot;have realised the necessity to take global cooperation to handle the challenge caused by production overcapacity&quot;. 
 
But despite claims that China is dumping steel in foreign markets, he said &quot;China&#39;s effort in (handling) over capacity has been highly recognised&quot; by the group. 
 
&quot;While some other countries are talking about how to cut down production, Chinese government has already taken measures which have been effective.&quot; 
 
Meanwhile Britain&#39;s referendum vote to leave the European Union (EU) has added new concerns for the recovery of global economic and trade growth. 
 
&quot;Britain leaving the European Union will definitely have some impact on global trade, especially short-term investment,&quot; China&#39;s Wang commented today. 
 
Britain&#39;s trade minister Mark Price told the Financial Times in Beijing ahead of the weekend talk that tariffs would jump to an average level of at least three per cent after its exit from the EU. 
 
He said it&#39;s time to &quot;start exploring options&quot; on trade agreements and &quot;China is making very positive noises at the moment&quot;, the report said. 
 
(AFP)

Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union has added new concerns for the recovery of global economic and trade growth

The world`s top 20 economies will work to boost sluggish global trade despite growing protectionism, overcapacity concerns, and uncertainty over Brexit, G20 trade ministers said today at a meeting in Shanghai. "The global recovery continues, but it remains uneven and falls short of our ambition for strong, sustainable and balanced growth. Downside risks and vulnerabilities persist," the trade ministers said in a joint statement, adding that trade should remain "an important engine" to spur global growth. Protectionism has been rising, G20 nations acknowledge The G20 nations, which account for 85 per cent of global trade, admitted that protectionism has been rising since the financial crisis, and said that new trade restrictions in the group had reached the highest monthly average registered since the World Trade Organisation (WTO) began monitoring in 2009. "We note with concern that despite the G20's repeated pledge, the stock of restrictive measure affecting trade in goods and services has continued to rise," they said in the statement. Ahead of the meeting, WTO chief economist Robert Koopman warned that restrictive measures could affect industries including air freight cargo, sea based cargo, automobile sales and production, electronics trade, and agricultural raw materials. The world's leading economies over the weekend pledged to oppose trade protectionism and reiterated a promise not to add new protective measures until 2018. Global trade governance to be improve to combat slowdown Pertinent to mention that global trade is expected to grow at a tepid 2.8 per cent in 2016, the WTO had said in April. And this year is expected to be the fifth in a row where trade grew at less than three per cent, its weakest sustained level in 30 years, WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said on Friday ahead of the talks. To combat the global slowdown, the ministers said they agreed to improve global trade governance and to work towards easing and liberalising trade.Concerns over China's production overcapacity in steel have led to trade disputes with the EU and US, and China`s vice commerce minister Wang Shouwen said today that the G20 economies "have realised the necessity to take global cooperation to handle the challenge caused by production overcapacity". But despite claims that China is dumping steel in foreign markets, he said "China's effort in (handling) over capacity has been highly recognised" by the group. "While some other countries are talking about how to cut down production, Chinese government has already taken measures which have been effective." Meanwhile Britain's referendum vote to leave the European Union (EU) has added new concerns for the recovery of global economic and trade growth. "Britain leaving the European Union will definitely have some impact on global trade, especially short-term investment," China's Wang commented today. Britain's trade minister Mark Price told the Financial Times in Beijing ahead of the weekend talk that tariffs would jump to an average level of at least three per cent after its exit from the EU. He said it's time to "start exploring options" on trade agreements and "China is making very positive noises at the moment", the report said. (AFP)

G20 nations pledge to boost sluggish global trade

China will work with its G20 partners to promote global trade growth, Beijing&#39;s commerce minister said today, as the world&#39;s top economies met in Shanghai. 
 
Global trade is expected to grow at a tepid 2.8 per cent in 2016, the World Trade Organization (WTO) said in April, with uncertainty over Britain&#39;s decision to leave the EU only adding to concerns. 
 
&quot;The economic recovery and growth is still feeble and global trade is fluctuating at a low level,&quot; Gao Hucheng said before ministers began talks, vowing: &quot;China is willing to work with all parties with wisdom, courage and action.&quot; 
 
WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo said on Friday ahead of the talks that 2016 would be the fifth consecutive year with trade growth below three per cent -- its weakest sustained level in 30 years. 
 
He warned that there were &quot;no immediate signs of significant change in the current trajectory for trade growth&quot;. 
 
Gao said ministers would discuss how to boost trade and coordinate global investment strategies, as well as how to strengthen investment among G20 nations. 
 
&quot;The world is hopeful despite the still difficult tasks which lie in front of us. But there is still great hope and opportunities contained in this,&quot; Gao said. 
 
Today&#39;s talks bring together G20 trade ministers as well as representatives from organisations including the IMF, OECD and WTO. They will give a press conference on Sunday after two days of talks behind closed doors. 
 
China, a key driver of global growth, has seen its GDP growth slip to its slowest rate in a quarter of a century, with expansion last year weakening to 6.9 per cent. 
 
The world&#39;s largest trader in goods also saw its total trade fall eight per cent last year. 
 
The World Bank identified the slump in Chinese growth and the country&#39;s economic transition as the key factor in a sharp slowdown in global trade last year, in a report released in March. 
 
Beijing has been trying to retool its economy to encourage domestic consumption and move away from infrastructure investment and exports as the main drivers of growth, but the pace has been slow. 
 
Azevedo also appealed for cooperation in the battle to spur trade. 
 
&quot;This is a time for governments to work together to see how trade can be used to boost growth, development and job creation,&quot; he said on Friday. 
 
&quot;It is a time for vigilance against measures which hamper and restrict trade and against very damaging anti-trade rhetoric.&quot; 
 
(AFP)

The talks will bring together G20 trade ministers as well as representatives from organisations including the IMF, OECD and WTO

China will work with its G20 partners to promote global trade growth, Beijing's commerce minister said today, as the world's top economies met in Shanghai. Global trade is expected to grow at a tepid 2.8 per cent in 2016, the World Trade Organization (WTO) said in April, with uncertainty over Britain's decision to leave the EU only adding to concerns. "The economic recovery and growth is still feeble and global trade is fluctuating at a low level," Gao Hucheng said before ministers began talks, vowing: "China is willing to work with all parties with wisdom, courage and action." WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo said on Friday ahead of the talks that 2016 would be the fifth consecutive year with trade growth below three per cent -- its weakest sustained level in 30 years. He warned that there were "no immediate signs of significant change in the current trajectory for trade growth". Gao said ministers would discuss how to boost trade and coordinate global investment strategies, as well as how to strengthen investment among G20 nations. "The world is hopeful despite the still difficult tasks which lie in front of us. But there is still great hope and opportunities contained in this," Gao said. Today's talks bring together G20 trade ministers as well as representatives from organisations including the IMF, OECD and WTO. They will give a press conference on Sunday after two days of talks behind closed doors. China, a key driver of global growth, has seen its GDP growth slip to its slowest rate in a quarter of a century, with expansion last year weakening to 6.9 per cent. The world's largest trader in goods also saw its total trade fall eight per cent last year. The World Bank identified the slump in Chinese growth and the country's economic transition as the key factor in a sharp slowdown in global trade last year, in a report released in March. Beijing has been trying to retool its economy to encourage domestic consumption and move away from infrastructure investment and exports as the main drivers of growth, but the pace has been slow. Azevedo also appealed for cooperation in the battle to spur trade. "This is a time for governments to work together to see how trade can be used to boost growth, development and job creation," he said on Friday. "It is a time for vigilance against measures which hamper and restrict trade and against very damaging anti-trade rhetoric." (AFP)

China vows to act with G20 partners to boost world trade

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WTO rejects India's appeal in US solar dispute; India could be forced to change existing laws

WTO says won't take Trump pullout bait

G20 nations pledge to boost sluggish global trade

China vows to act with G20 partners to boost world trade