China's agricultural subsidies doubled between 2005 and 2008, according to new figures provided by the government to the WTO. However, the report classes all farm support as 'green box,' the category for payments that are exempt from any ceiling or cuts on the grounds that they cause no more than minimal trade distortion.This is China's third subsidy notification since its 2001 accession to the global trade body. The previous notifications were in 2010 and 2006.
The new data shows a dramatic increase in recent farm subsidy provisions, which grew from 310 billion RMB yuan to 593 billion RMB yuan - or approximately US$85 billion over the four year period. The growth reflects a long-term trend towards increased support for agriculture in China, all of which has been reported as green box.
For more information, click here.
Posted 10/19/2011
