Solar panel dispute ends but new rows loom

Published on 6 August 2013 at 12:33

A hard-fought deal between China and the EU over imports of Chinese solar panels, which comes into force on August 6, will kickstart a “fierce” battle among the Asian country’s manufacturers as they seek to comply with export caps and minimum price limits, writes China Daily.

The agreement, which EU leaders approved on August 2, allows China to sell up to 7GW of capacity to Europe but at a minimum price of 56 euro cents per watt. This avoids the introduction of a punitive 47 per cent tax on Chinese imports following EU claims Chinese firms were receiving state subsidies and selling panels at prices lower than the cost of production, a practice known as “dumping”.

The newspaper praises the reconciliation mechanism saying a permanent system should be introduced to resolve future trade rows.

The recent solar panel resolution [...] proved to be a good example of defusing trade frictions through high-level communications so much so that experts are now calling for a regular mechanism in resolving rising disputes.

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Meanwhile, the Financial Times reports that the EU is to postpone another inquiry into controversial Chinese business dealings, this time in the telecoms sector, until after the state-owned telecommunications provider China Mobile awards contracts to international firms for a huge upgrade to its wireless network. The daily continues –

Karel De Gucht, the EU trade commissioner, is inclined to bury the case, according to officials, if European companies are awarded a healthy share of a project that is expected to account for as much as half of global telecoms investment next year.

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