Aircraft
U.S. Files WTO Proceedings against China over Aircraft Taxes
Cites failure to disclose VAT exemption for Chinese aircraft manufacturers
Comac recently delivered the first production ARJ-21 regional jet to Chengdu Airlines.
Comac recently delivered the first production ARJ-21 regional jet to Chengdu Airlines.

The office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has launched dispute settlement proceedings at the World Trade Organization over China’s exemption of value added tax (VAT) on domestically made commercial jets weighing less than 25 metric tons, including the new Comac ARJ-21, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman announced Tuesday. The U.S. claims that China’s 17 percent VAT on imported aircraft in that weight category constitutes a breach of WTO rules against taxation on the basis of national origin and that China’s failure to publish measures to exempt its own manufacturers from the tax violates transparency commitments the country made when it joined the WTO.