China is expressing its concern about the European Union's investigations into Chinese-made wireless wide area networking (WWAN) modems, said a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on Thursday.

Yao Jian, the spokesman, made the remarks after the EU said it was conducting an anti-subsidy investigation into the devices.

The EU launched investigations of anti-dumping and supporting measures on the WWAN modems from China on June 30, 2010. It is the first time the EU has made simultaneous triple investigations on a China-made product, Yao said.

The move is unheard of for World Trade Organization members when dealing with trade remedy cases in practice, Yao said. The Chinese public and people working in the industry showed strong dissatisfaction towards the EU's practice.

The WWAN modems are high-tech products that are constantly updated. These Chinese-made modems promote the advances of the technology and created new market fields which benefited the EU consumers, Yao said.

The EU's investigations will disrupt normal trade and hurt the interests of EU consumers, he said.

Yao further stated that the EU's move is also running counter to the deepening China-EU friendship.

He said he hoped the EU could take actions based upon relevant laws and the facts and keep their promise on being opposed to trade protectionism, lest it damages China-EU economic and trade relations and also the EU economy.

China will take corresponding measures within the rules of the World Trade organization in due time, he added.

The investigation is the largest trade remedy investigation case against China, involving a total value of US$4.1 billion in exports.

Wireless modems send or receive data as a radio signal.

The 27-member EU is China's biggest trade partner. China is the EU's second-biggest trade partner and is its biggest source of imports.

China's main exports to Europe are machinery and domestic goods, including clothes and shoes. While the EU's main exports to China include industrial machinery, transport equipment, chemicals and high-end consumer goods.

Concerning the request for consultations from the United States about China's alleged anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on US steel exports and China's policies on the electronic payment market, China has received the request and will resolve the issue based upon WTO rules, said MOC officials.

US trade representative Ron Kirk filed a statement with the WTO Wednesday, claiming China imposes duties on US steel exports and discriminates against suppliers of electronic payment services from the US.

China's policies on electronic payment services are consistent with the country's commitment to the WTO and the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties on US-made steel are also in line with WTO rules, according to the MOC.

US is China's second largest trade partner.

(Xinhua News Agency September 17, 2010)