The Chinese embassy in Ottawa criticized duties slapped by Canada this week on Chinese imported steel, saying on Friday they violated World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and disrupted the global trade order.

Ottawa this week introduced a tariff rate quota for countries with which it has free trade agreements, excluding the U.S., and imposed additional tariffs on steel imports from all countries containing steel melted and poured in China before the end of July.

Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Wednesday that the government was tightening rules around steel imports. The move is an effort to protect Canada's domestic industry from dumping as the global trade of the metal undergoes major shifts because of government actions out of the United States and China.