The Ministry of Commerce of China File photo: VCG

A spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Thursday said that China's industrial subsidy policies strictly comply with WTO rules and faithfully fulfill its transparency obligations. China believes that the report released by the OECD lacks rigorous concept definitions, has biased sample selection, and draws one-sided and arbitrary conclusions.

The spokesperson urged the OECD avoid politicizing its research reports or using them as tools, which would undermine its own credibility.

The comments were made as on June 1 when the OECD released a report on industrial subsidies claiming that Chinese companies received the most subsidies.

Subsidies are a common policy tool used by various economies, including OECD members. China is willing to actively participate in international discussions on industrial subsidy rules, said the spokesperson.

The "subsidies" mentioned in the report suffer from a lack of uniform measurement standards and statistical methodologies, and deviate from the consensus reached in multilateral frameworks such as the WTO, according to the spokesperson.

The report attributes the increase in Chinese enterprises' global market share solely to government subsidies, completely overlooking their true core competitive strengths in areas such as economies of scale, production efficiency, and technological iteration, the spokesperson said. 

We urge the OECD to conduct its research in an objective and neutral manner, extensively listen to the views of relevant parties, use comprehensive, accurate, and authoritative data and information, and reflect the true state of industrial development and policy implementation, according to the spokesperson.

The OECD should avoid politicizing its research reports or using them as tools, which would undermine its own credibility, said the spokesperson.

Global Times