China to keep anti-dumping steel duties on EU, UK, S. Korea and Indonesia

BEIJING: China will maintain duties on certain steel products from the European Union, the United Kingdom, South Korea and Indonesia, its commerce ministry said on Monday, as overcapacity concerns drive global trade turbulence.

The duties on stainless steel billets and hot-rolled plates, first levied by Beijing in 2019, range from 20.2% on Indonesian imports to 43% on those from the EU.

The ministry said an internal investigation found that removing the anti-dumping duties could still cause “damage” to the domestic stainless steel industry.

“Authorities will therefore continue to impose duties on products from the three countries and the European bloc for a period of five years starting from 1 July,” the statement added.

China, the world’s largest steel producer, first introduced the measures in response to tariffs imposed by the United States during Donald Trump’s first presidential term.

The US duties were motivated by fears in Washington and among its allies that unfair industrial policies in China had led to a global glut of cheap exports, threatening to undercut local producers.

Since returning to office in January, Trump has sent the world economy into a tailspin with a tariff blitz that has hit Chinese exports particularly hard.

Trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies remain high despite China and the United States reaching a temporary truce this month.

By RSS/AFP