The U.S. Aluminum Association on Thursday filed an anti-dumping petition against the Chinese aluminium manufacturers, marking the first official trade complaint against China under the new Trump regime.

The petition accuses Chinese manufacturers of dumping certain kinds of aluminium foil into the U.S. market at immensely lower price that is causing "material injury" to the domestic industry. The aluminium foil is widely used in the packaging industry.

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"(The move) reflects both the intensive injury being suffered by U.S. aluminium foil producers and also our commitment to ensuring that trade laws are enforced to create a level playing field for domestic producers," said Heidi Brock, President and Chief Executive of the Aluminum Association.

As per the law, the U.S. Commerce Department has 20 days and the U.S. International Trade Commission has 45 days to decide whether a full-fledged investigation should be launched against the Chinese manufacturers. The final judgement is expected to arrive in the first quarter of 2018.

Responding to the petition, China's Commerce Ministry on Friday urged the U.S. to act cautiously and not to use "trade rescue measures."

China is one of the top aluminium foil exporters to the U.S. market, exporting 1.1 million tonnes of foil last year, a 13 percent increase from 2015. However, cheap Chinese aluminium foil has become a bane even for big U.S aluminium foil manufacturer. This became more than evident when the U.S. aluminium giant Novelis sold its aluminium foil business to Reynolds in 2013.

Last year, the outgoing Obama administration filed a complaint against China at the World Trade Organization (WTO) for giving undue subsidies to its local aluminium manufactures. The U.S. alleged that these subsidies caused a breakdown in global aluminium prices that left its local industry reeling under immense pressure.    

Trump's Trade Assaults against China    

U.S. President Donald Trump has never made any bones about his critical against China's trade practices. Last year, during his explosive campaigning trail he promised if he is elected as the U.S. president he will launch a war against China's unfair trade policies. His dire warning came at a time when China's steel overcapacity became a global issue that caused almost the entire global steel industry to press the panic button.

Keeping true to his promise, the trump administration is said to be seriously mulling over imposing huge tariffs on the Chinese imported products. The issue has already become a contagious issue between the two countries, with many trade experts warning of a trade war that could have a severe impact on global market.     

TagsChina Anti Dumping, China Anti Trust Probes, China Aluminium, china