China initiates WTO complaint

China has launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of phenols from Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and the US, the Board of Foreign Trade (BOFT) said yesterday. It marked the first time China has applied the WTO mechanism to initiate an anti-dumping case against Taiwan since the two political rivals joined the international trade body, the BOFT said. Taiwan entered the WTO on Jan. 1, following China's entry in December. Phenol is a petrochemical material used for making plastic bodies of telephones and computer and home appliance parts. Taiwan sold US$39 million in phenol to China last year, accounting for 37.3 percent its total imports of the product last year. Japan accounted for 30.7 percent, while 18.7 percent came from South Korea and 9.3 percent from the US. The BOFT said it was discussing with local petrochemical associations and phenol manufacturers a response to the dumping allegation.