WTO Anti-dumping Sunset Review System Reform Research

The system of sunset review in anti-dumping law is defined as follows:in the reasonable time before the five years’anti-dumping measures to expire, an application by interested parties or the authorities in charge on their own initiative start the review procedures, to determine that the anti-dumping measures should be revoked or suspended unless the results show that the revocation or termination of anti-dumping measures will lead to the continuation or re-occurrence of dumping and injury, and vice versa. Anti-dumping in global trade is becoming more and more serious, so sunset review system which determines whether stopping the five years’anti-dumping measures or not is paid increasing attention by member countries. Since WTO formally confirmed in Article11of the Anti-dumping Agreement in1994, member countries started amending their anti-dumping laws one after another to introduce or consummate their own systems, as a stepping stone of anti-dumping sunset review system, Among which USA and EU feature their anti-dumping measures with rich experience in legislation, the completeness and respective traits. As two of the frequent users of anti-dumping measures, they have the character of strong operability. After presenting the development history of both, several aspects in the sunset review law systems of the two economies have been compared by analyzing two typical cases, including the administration of sunset review system, procedural and substantial regulations of sunset review system and judicial review of sunset review system, in order to show their substance.In contrary, the history of the sunset review system of our country is short, although there are related six sunset review items in China’s present Anti-dumping Statute in2004, they are relatively simple, incomplete and lack of feasibility. Moreover in practice China’s corporations usually failed to defend themselves effectively, resulting in bearing anti-dumping measures for long, which is adverse to the foreign trade development of our country. Based on the above, our country should learn the mature legislation from USA and EU to establish the applicable operation rules of sunset review procedures and direct anti-dumping operations.In addition, to have a good prospect of how the Sunset Review system developed and is going to develop is also a good guide to China’s practice in avoiding long-lasting anti-dumping measures. And clearly, we can fine the developing track of the Sunset Review system through DSB adjudication, and ongoing reformation of the system by probing Doha Round of WTO negotiations.