India asks US to comply with WTO ruling on shrimp exports

Mumbai: India has sought an early end to a US anti-dumping measure initiated against Indian shrimp and has later been lifted by a World Trade Organisation ruling.

India has asked the United States to comply with the WTO ruling in the ''shortest possible time'' as it has imposed a heavy financial burden on the Indian shrimp industry.

In August, the WTO's Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) had ruled that the US measure, requiring importers of warm-water shrimp to deposit cash and customs bond equal to the margin of dumping that may exist in investigation, was illegal and violative of the international trade practices.

While the US agreed to abide by the DSB ruling, it had said it would need a ''reasonable period of time'' for the corrective steps.

''India is disappointed at the US request for `RPT', as the Indian shrimp industry continues to face an enormous burden on its exports due to the US anti-dumping measure,'' a WTO statement said.

Thailand, which is also a party to the dispute, has said it would hold talks with the US soon for an RPT to ensure prompt implementation of the WTO ruling.

India's shrimp exports declined to 137,397 tonnes in 2006-07 from 145,180 tonnes before the US measure. Shipments to the US dropped sharply by 37 per cent in 2006-07 to $99.28 million from $158.12 million in the previous fiscal.

Frozen shrimp is the largest export item among India's total shipment of marine products, constituting 54 per cent in value terms. The US is the largest market for Indian shrimps followed by Japan.