Economics

U.S. Appeals WTO Ruling That Trump’s China Tariffs Were Illegal

  • An appeal acts as a veto due to the appellate body’s paralysis
  • U.S. says tariffs necessary to curb China’s technology theft

Three WTO experts said the U.S. broke global regulations when it imposed tariffs on Chinese goods in 2018.

Photographer: Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg
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The Trump administration on Monday appealed a World Trade Organization dispute ruling that said American tariffs on more than $234 billion of Chinese exports violated international rules, a move that rendered the decision effectively moot.

That’s because the U.S. has already paralyzed the WTO’s appeals process by blocking the appointment of new panelists to its appellate body.