US to launch China WTO aluminum complaint

The Obama administration is expected to launch a formal complaint Thursday against the Chinese government with the World Trade Organization over subsidies it says Beijing provides to the country’s vast aluminum industry, according to The Wall Street Journal. The complaint would represent an escalation of trade disputes between countries with the world’s two largest economies almost a week before Donald Trump assumes the US presidency. Trump suggested again Wednesday in a news conference that trade relations with Beijing would be a top priority, saying the US trade imbalance with China was too large. The complaint accuses China of funneling artificially cheap loans from state-run banks to Chinese aluminum producers, helping the companies upgrade their facilities and expand production, sources said. China also subsidizes aluminum production by providing producers with cut-rate coal and electricity, the complaint says, according to people familiar with it.