. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONTN/RL/W/38
6 December 2002
(02-6744)
Negotiating Group on Rules Original:  English
COMMENTS FROM AUSTRALIA ON THE UNITED STATES' PAPER ON
BASIC CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES OF THE TRADE REMEDY RULES
(DOCUMENT TN/RL/W/27)
Submission by Australia
The following communication, dated 25 November 2002, has been received from the
Permanent Mission of Australia.
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Australia thanks the United States for its basic concepts paper.  Australia agrees with a
number of the broad principles outlined in the US paper.  For example, Australia agrees that trade
remedy rules should be underpinned by the objectives of transparency, effectiveness and due process.Australia seeks to explore these basic concepts further.
The United States notes that the Doha Ministerial looks beyond the basic concepts and
principles of trade remedy rules to the need to identify disciplines on trade-distorting practices.
Australia supports addressing trade-distorting practices.  However, Australia considers that there
needs to be a distinction between a trade-distorting practice (to which trade remedies are available to
address) and the trade remedy itself.  The WTO Agreements as a whole deal with various forms andaspects of trade-distorting practices but Australia considers that the primary focus of the mandate for
the Negotiating Group on Rules decided by Ministers in Doha is to address the rules captured by the
WTO Agreements on Implementation of Article VI of the GATT 1994 (the Anti-Dumping
Agreement) and on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures.
• Does the United States consider trade-distorting practices are the subject of the wider universe
of rules covered by the WTO Agreements?
• Does the United States consider that addressing trade-distorting practices should exclude
consideration of improving and clarifying trade remedy rules?
• Would the United States agree that trade remedy instruments are designed to respond to
certain trade-distorting practices?
Part C, Section 1:  Anti-Dumping Rules as a Remedial Mechanism
The United States notes that “anti-dumping duties alone will not provide a long-term solution
to distorted markets abroad, especially if foreign governments do not solve the underlying problems intheir own markets”.TN/RL/W/38
Page 2
• Does the United States consider that dumping by companies per se stems from
government industrial policies or government intervention in the marketplace, or onlyinjurious dumping?
Part C, Section 2:  The Use of Countervailing Duties to Address Subsidization
• How would the United States propose strengthening disciplines on subsidies?
• In terms of the four core principles outlined in the paper, could the United States explain on
which specific areas relating to transparency and due process it wishes to see further
refinement?
The United States refers to work begun in the OECD relating to trade distorting practices in
the steel sector.  The United States proposes that participants agree to prohibit substantially all
subsidies to steel (with some exceptions) (refer page 4 of the US steel paper contained in
TN/RL/W/24).  It notes that this work could provide a basis for the work of the Rules Negotiating
Group.
• Is the United States proposing within the Ru les Group that substantially all subsidies be
prohibited?
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