Solar panel manufacturers in US seek action against dumping by China

Solar panel manufacturers in the United States, led by SolarWorld AG, a Germany-based company that manufactures solar panels in Oregon, have sought action against Chinese companies for alleged dumping of products in the US market.

A striking feature of the trade case filed yesterday by seven solar panel makers in the US lies is not what the public docket reveals, rather what it does not - the names of six of the seven companies.

According to commerce department rules, companies can keep their involvement in trade cases anonymous and the option has been exercised by all but one company, Solar World, in the solar panel filing.

Companies are at times wary of filing trade cases against China, or of even cooperating with the US government on investigations of possible Chinese violations of international trade rules, fearing being shut out of the vast market, or not being allowed to set up manufacturing operations there.

"To the extent a company wants to share their concerns with us and not go public, we respect that," Francisco J Sanchez, the American under secretary of commerce for international trade, said at a news conference in Hong Kong on Monday.

China has now emerged as the largest market globally for cars, desktop computers, cellphones, flat-screen televisions and many other products. Further, for multinational manufacturers, it is also the least expensive place in the world producing a wide range of products. However, rising wages in China are making manufacturers of some toys and garments to move to even lower-wage countries like Vietnam and Bangladesh.