Washington: Rejecting India's challenges, the United States on June 20 claimed it has emerged victorious in a World Trade Organisation (WTO) complaint brought by New Delhi, a decision likely to keep India from increasing exports to the US markets.

"A WTO panel has upheld US laws on determining the country of origin of textile and apparel products in a dispute brought by India challenging these rules," US trade representative Robert B Zoellick said.

"Rules of origin are used to determine the country of origin of imported goods," he said, adding the US laws are consistent with US WTO obligations, rejecting all of India's challenges.

"This is an important victory for American trade laws and American textile trade. Detailed US rules of origin for textiles help make sure that everyone plays by the rules..." Zoellick said.

India had said that its exports of unfinished cotton fabrics that were finished or dyed in the United States should not be counted against its quota.

India said the US rules were unfair, as it had adopted the different rules for silk goods.

The WTO upheld US rules that were enacted under a 1996 law setting standards for countries of origin for textiles.

The WTO panel rejected India's arguments that US rules of origin improperly differentiate between textile and apparel products and other industrial products, and that the US rules were adopted to protect the US textile industry from competition.

Instead, the panel agreed with the United States that the rules of origin are entirely consistent with US obligations under the WTO Agreement on Rules of Origin.

India will have an opportunity to appeal the WTO decision.

PTI