International Trade Update

Steel Update

First Meeting Held In WTO Challenge Against US Section 201 Safeguard Measures

The World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement panel charged with examining the challenge of eight Members against the US Section 201 safe-guard measures on steel held its first meetings on October 29-31. During the meetings, complainants and the United States presented their arguments orally before the panel and responded to questions from the panel. Members must provide written answers to questions asked by the panel and by co-complainants currently are due by November 12.

The meetings began with a detailed summary of the complaints raised against the United States with respect to the 8 percent to 30 percent tariffs on 10 product categories of steel. The next two days focused on the legal arguments in support and opposition to the claims raised. Complainants presented their arguments that the US safeguard measures were imposed without meeting the WTO requirement and standard of "serious injury" and that the United States did not properly establish a causal relationship between increased imports and injury to the domestic industry.

Separately, Taiwan on November 5 requested dispute settlement consultations with the United States over the March 2002 US safeguard measures on steel. The request for dispute settlement consultations is Taiwan's first since joining the WTO last January. Although Taiwan already is a third party in the ongoing dispute, it reportedly decided to request its own consultations after failing to secure certain exclusions.

Finally, China notified the WTO on November 5 that it will impose definitive safeguard measures in the form of tariff rate quotas on five steel product categories beginning November 20. China previously imposed provisional safe guard measures on these steel categories in response to what it claimed were sharp and sudden increases between 1999 and 2001 and "unforeseen" developments, including the US and EU safeguard measures.

US Steel Exclusion Process To Begin Soon

The US Department of Commerce (DOC) and the US Trade Representative (USTR) are preparing for the product exclusion process for the 2003/2004 period. USTR issued a notice on September 3 requesting comments on proposed exclusion questionnaires. The questionnaires are based on those used in the previous exclusion process and have been revised to respond to concerns that arose during that process. Reportedly, USTR and DOC had hoped to begin the...