Question

Under the WTO rules for protectionism under the unsafe consumer products argument, countries cannotSelect all that apply.a.use this argument as a valid reason for protection.b.apply different safety standards to domestic and imported goods.c.apply standards that have no scientific basis,d.apply standards that differ from those of their trading partners.

Answer 1

Under WTO rules, countries cannot discriminate between domestic and imported goods by applying different standards, nor can they apply unfounded safety standards; standards must be scientifically based and not discriminatory.

Step-by-step explanation:

Under WTO rules for protectionism regarding unsafe consumer products, countries cannot:

• Apply safety standards that have no scientific basis.
• Arbitrarily or unjustifiably discriminate between countries where identical or similar conditions prevail.
• Impose one set of health and safety standards for domestically produced goods but a different set for imports.

Countries can, however, use the argument of unsafe consumer products as a valid reason for protectionism, provided the safety standards set have a scientific justification and are applied equally to both domestic and imported goods. It is also noted that countries do not have to reduce their health and safety standards for imported products as per WTO rules and they can maintain different standards from their trading partners as long as they meet the stipulated conditions.