World Trade Organization

• Author: International Law Group

On June 22, 2001, the World Trade Organization (WTO) circulated the Panel report reviewing Mexico's implementation of its previous report that found Mexican anti-dumping duties on U.S. products improper under the Antidumping Agreement (AD Agreement). In 1988, Mexico's anti-dumping authority, SECOFI, had determined that imports of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) from the U.S. were being dumped in the Mexican market and threatened material injury to the Mexican sugar industry.

A WTO Dispute Settlement Panel reviewed the matter and sided with the U.S. in its Panel report of January 2000. On September 20, 2000, the Mexican anti-dumping authority issued a new determination that was supposed to comply with the Panel's recommendations. In that new determination, the Mexican authority granted refunds of the provisional anti-dumping duties for a certain period but again concluded that HFCS imports threaten the Mexican sugar industry, and confirmed the anti-dumping duties. The U.S. then sought recourse under Article 21.5 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU).

In essence, the Panel found that Mexico failed to comply with the earlier Panel report where Mexico was found to have improperly determined that HFCS imports threatened Mexico's sugar industry.

The Panel concludes that Mexico's imposition of definitive anti- dumping duties on HFCS imports from the U.S. on the basis of...