KOCHI: The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has set up a panel to investigate the U.S. anti-dumping duties on shrimp, which Washington is already defending in two separate trade disputes.

India argued that the U.S. policy was illegal in forcing Indian shrimp exporters to take out a customs bond equal to about a year's worth of duties.

"The United States continues to impose the WTO-inconsistent continuous bond requirement on importers of certain warm water shrimp from India in an arbitrary and discriminatory manner," India told the WTO's dispute settlement body.

The Governments imposed anti-dumping duties when they suspected that producers were exporting products at below the market price in their own country — usually because exports were subsidised or if it was believed there was an attempt to corner the market.

India said it was "compelled to seek recourse to dispute settlement" after a failure by the U.S. to address its concerns.

The WTO already was investigating whether the U.S. duties on shrimp imports from Ecuador and Thailand violated international trade rules.

The United States also applied anti-dumping fees on shrimp from Brazil, China and Vietnam.

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