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An investigative panel will almost certainly be established to examine India’s compliance with international trade rules at a meeting later this month of the WTO’s dispute settlement body, officials said.

India has introduced several measures “in the form of duties, which have continued to restrict the access of EU wines and spirits to the Indian market,” Raimund Raith, trade negotiator for the 27-nation European Union, told the WTO’s dispute settlement body. […]

The United States, which has also filed a complaint with the WTO about Indian treatment of American wine and spirits, said it shared the EU’s concerns.The U.S. is still in consultations with India, but can ask for a formal investigation as early as May if the two sides fail to reach an agreement. […]

India’s basic import duties on wine are 100 percent, while the tariff on spirits is at 150 percent, both within WTO limits. However, various government surcharges take the tariffs up to levels reaching as high as 540 percent depending on the Indian state. (Source).