US and EU to file WTO suit against China

The US and the European Union will file a World Trade Organization suit against China this month over concerns the country is hoarding minerals, the Wall Street Journal reported. China is alleged to have been using tariffs on exports to keep important industrial ingredients such as zinc, tin and silicon for use at home while aggressively buying up large quantities of minerals from resource-rich African countries. China’s 95% export duty on yellow phosphorous, a material used to make numerous industrial chemicals, has in particular raised objections from the US and EU. European officials say the duty is far above the limits on such duties that China accepted when it joined the WTO.