China yesterday rejected the allegations of protectionism and illegal trade subsidies made by a growing list of countries and hit back with its own trade investigation and a complaint to the World Trade Organisation.

Beijing has asked the WTO to investigate US restrictions on imports of Chinese poultry products and has launched its own anti-dumping investigation into methanol imported from Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Indonesia and New Zealand, China's commerce ministry said yesterday.

It dismissed claims from the European Union and US that Chinese export quotas and tariffs on raw materials violated WTO rules and expressed “regret” that Australia had launched an investigation into allegations that Chinese producers have dumped aluminium products in Australia at below market prices.