WTO strikes down US import curbs on Indian seafood

KOCHI: Indian seafood exporters can heave a sigh of relief as the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has ruled against imposition of additional customs bond by the US on Indian seafood products.

The customs bond is a surety guaranteeing that the importer will abide by all laws and regulations governing the import of merchandise into the US.

A dispute settlement panel of WTO has accepted India's plea against imposition of additional 100 percent customs bonds by the US on Indian shrimp imports to that country, an official of the Seafood Exporters Association of India told IANS Wednesday.

"The decision came on Feb 29. Another reason for cheer is that the anti-dumping duty on seafood products from India, which was raised to 10.54 percent in August 2004, should be lowered to 1.09 percent," the official said.

The first positive development in the case came in December 2006 when the US Court of International Trade gave a preliminary ruling that the additional bond imposed on shrimp imports from India was contrary to the law, he said.

"Consequent to the tough new rules imposed by the US against Indian shrimp products, the number of seafood exporters which stood at 280 then had dwindled to a mere 68 by the end of this January," the official said.