The Ministry of Commerce Photo: VCG

China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced on Friday to launch a safeguard investigation into imported beef, starting from December 27, 2024, at the request of domestic industry associations. 

The survey covers the period from January 1, 2019, to June 30, 2024, according to the ministry.  

The MOFCOM on November 22 received the application for investigations of safeguard measures for the beef industry of China submitted by 10 domestic associations on behalf of the domestic beef industry. The applicants requested for a safeguard investigation into imported beef. 

The applicants stated that the sharp increase in the number of imports of beef products under application for investigation had caused an impact on China's domestic industry and that there is a causal relationship between the increase in imports and the serious injury to China's domestic industry, said MOFCOM.

The commerce ministry's announcement to launch a safeguard investigation into imported beef has played a role in stabilizing expectations for the domestic cattle industry, which is also a measure in line with WTO rules, China Animal Agriculture Association (CAAA), which is one of the applicants for the safeguard investigation, said on Friday in a statement.

"China's livestock industry strongly calls on authorities to take control measures on imported beef to protect domestic farmers' livelihoods and industrial safety, as the excessive import of beef has caused substantial damage to the domestic industry," CAAA stated. 

There are WTO agricultural provisions that allow for safeguard measures if imports from an industry have a severe impact on domestic production, Li Guoxiang, a researcher from the Rural Development Institute, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Friday.

"The investigation conducted by the MOFCOM at the request of domestic industry is in line with international multilateral trade rules," said Li.

The number of imports of products applied for investigation - the meat of bovine animals - increased sharply between 2019 and the first half of 2024. The imports in 2023 were 64.93 percent higher than in 2019, and imports in the first half of 2024 were 106.28 percent higher than in the first half of 2019, MOFCOM said, citing the application document.

From 2019 to the first half of 2024, the market share of imports of beef applied for investigation increased from 20.55 percent to 30.90 percent in China, and the proportion relative to China's total production increased from 24.87 percent to 43.87 percent, per MOFCOM.

"Beef has become the largest imported meat product in 2023. And in the case of severe losses in the domestic industry, beef imports have surged significantly since 2024, with 2.6 million tons imported from January to November, up 4.3 percent year-on-year," CAAA noted.

The association also stated that since June 2023, the monthly import of imported beef has exceeded 200,000 tons for 18 consecutive months, which has had a serious impact on the domestic cattle industry. Under the impact of imported beef, domestic beef and live cattle prices have fallen rapidly, and the current beef price has fallen to the lowest level in nearly five years, and the live cattle price has fallen to the lowest level in nearly 10 years.

According to international practice, a safeguard investigation examines import trends and whether they cause or threaten serious harm to domestic producers.

"If subsequent investigations reveal that these beef imports have an impact on the domestic market, China can inform its trading partners about the specific circumstances of the investigation, and trading partners will reduce their corresponding exports through export quotas through negotiation and consultation mechanisms," said Li.

According to statistics from the General Administration of Customs, in the first half of 2024, China's biggest import sources of beef products, in terms of quantity, were Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand, and the US.

The Global Times learned from an industry source on December 19 that the CAAA held a video conference on the domestic beef production situation, attended by heads of relevant industry associations.

At the meeting, all attendees highlighted that currently, the production and operation of China's beef industry are facing serious difficulties. In November, the national average price of beef was 60.04 yuan ($8.23) per kilogram, a 14.79 percent year-on-year drop and the lowest level since September 2019, according to the source. 

"To help the industry overcome the difficulties, the association has prepared related materials and submitted an application to relevant authorities, hoping to use WTO rules to alleviate the temporary challenges facing the industry," the industry source said.  

According to international practice, a safeguard investigation examines import trends and whether they cause or threaten serious harm to domestic producers.

According to statistics from the General Administration of Customs, in the first half of 2024, China's biggest import sources of beef products, in terms of quantity, were Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Australia, New Zealand and the US.