Despite the increasing number of cases, Long Yongtu, the former chief WTO negotiator, does not see trade disputes as a huge factor in trade deals. "Foreign trade increases by nearly 30 per cent per year, and products hit by anti-dumping charges only amount to five per cent of the total export products," he said.

The Chinese Government and experts encourage enterprises to face disputes actively and protect their interests by using "weapons of the WTO," meaning the rules and regulations to protect against unfair anti-dumping charges.

"The more obstacles we clear out, the wider our business scope will be," said Pu Lingchen, the lawyer who helped Chinese enterprises handle over 40 anti-dumping cases and overturned the EU's anti-dumping charges against China-made lighters in 2003.

In a recent case involving shoe-makers, Ao Kang Group, one of the biggest shoes-makers in China, decided to file suit against the anti-dumping duty in the EU court.

Meanwhile, China has also initiated 110 anti-dumping investigations and one safeguard measure, which made up a total trade volume of US$9 billion during the last five years.

"The amount of countervailing cases started by China ranks second in the world, and the quality of investigation has also been recognized by people worldwide," said Wang Shouwen, director of the Bureau of Fair Trade for Imports and Exports, a government body in charge of trade disputes under the Ministry of Commerce.

The continuous opening of the domestic market and large-scale increase of imports are the main reason for these measures, according to Wang.

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