Trade Remedy System
What is the trade remedy system?
The trade remedy system is a general term for a system to protect a domestic industry and remedy its injury by imposing an extra duty in addition to customs duty, specifying the product, supplier and supplying country, etc., in case of special circumstances such as unfair trade practices and a sudden surge of import of foreign goods.
Trade remedy measures include a countervailing duty(Japanese) to be imposed on the imported goods subsidized by an exporting government, an anti-dumping duty(Japanese) to be imposed on the imported goods sold for export at less than normal price meaning, in principle, a sales price in the exporting country, a safeguard duty(Japanese) to be imposed on the imported goods surged by unexpected changes in the situation and a retaliatory duty(Japanese) to be imposed on the imported goods originating in a country giving discriminatory unfair treatment to the goods exported from Japan.
The trade remedy system has been widely adopted, not only by Japan but also by many other countries, to protect and help respective domestic industry. However, if used arbitrarily, it may distort international trade in goods. Thus, the international rules including WTO agreements provide for key requirements and procedures for the initiation of trade remedy measures. Japan’s trade remedy system is compliant with those rules.
Products under investigations
Press release（Link to Ministry of Finance Japan website）