US urged to act on steel imports

The European Union, with backing from China, Japan, and South Korea, today demanded that the United States immediately drop its duties on imported steel or face the possibility of billions of dollars in retaliation.

The EU said it would impose retaliatory sanctions of up to €2bn by introducing 100% duties on some US imports, effectively pricing the goods out of the EU market.

Tokyo said it was ready to retaliate by the end of the month unless Washington backed down.

EU officials said they planned to target tariffs at goods produced in crucial states in the 2004 presidential election, and would act if the US steel duties were still in place five days after the report has been formally adopted by the World Trade Organisation.

In a 170-page report, a three-member WTO panel rejected the bulk of the US appeal of an earlier ruling that said duties of up to 30% introduced in March 2002 by the Bush administration breached trade rules.

The United States insisted it was right to impose the “safeguard” tariffs for three years.

WTO director-general Supachai Panitchpakdi said he hoped the countries would be able to solve the problem without resorting to sanctions.