China recently informed the World Trade Organization (WTO) that it has terminated anti-dumping duties on imports of high-performance stainless steel seamless tubes (HP-SSST) from Japan and the European Union.

In 2012, China imposed the duties on certain HP-SSST at rates ranging from 9.2 percent to 14.4 percent for Japanese exporters and from 9.7 percent to 11.1 percent for exporters based in the EU.

Japan and the EU challenged the Chinese investigations that led to the imposition of those duties. In February 2015, dispute settlement panels established by the WTO concluded that the duties violated certain articles of the WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement.

The WTO Appellate Body subsequently upheld the findings of the panels and requested that China bring its measures into conformity with the WTO Anti-Dumping Agreement.

China said that following a re-investigation by its Ministry of Commerce on August 22, 2016, it had fully implemented the WTO's recommendations and rulings regarding the disputed duties.

Japan and the EU welcomed China's statement. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry said: "The fact that China decided to follow the WTO recommendation and lift the imposition of its anti-dumping duties re-confirms the effectiveness of the WTO dispute settlement procedures."

HP-SSST is high-grade steel used in ultra supercritical boilers in coal-fired power plants.