European Union – Countervailing Measures on Certain
Polyethylene Terephthalate from Pakistan

Communication from the Panel

The following communication, dated 10 December 2016, was received from the Chairperson of the Panel with the request that it be circulated to the Dispute Settlement Body.

_______________

Article 12.8 of the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes (DSU) provides that the period in which a panel shall conduct its examination, from the date that the composition and terms of reference of the panel have been agreed upon until the date final report is issued to the parties to the dispute, shall, as a general rule, not exceed six months.

Article 12.9 of the DSU provides that, when a panel considers that it cannot issue its report within six months, it shall inform the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) in writing accordingly and indicate the reasons, together with an estimate of the period within which it will issue its report.

The Panel on European Union – Countervailing Measures on Certain Polyethylene Terephthalate from Pakistan (WT/DS486) was established by the DSB on 25 March 2015 and composed on 13 May 2015.

The beginning of the Panel's work was delayed as a result of a lack of available experienced lawyers in the Secretariat.^[1] The Panel expects to issue its final report to the parties by 1 June 2017.

__________