U.S., EU Differ On Dealing With Steel Dumping

"Massive levels of steel are being dumped in the U.S. market," asserts Andrew G. Sharkey III, president and CEO of the American Iron & Steel Institute, Washington, D.C. And the industry is taking its cases to the U.S. government, having already filed complaints against Japan, Russia, and Brazil. A preliminary hearing on the complaints is scheduled for Oct. 21 before the U.S. International Trade Commission. And now the 15-nation European Union (EU) is claiming that it, too, is experiencing a surge in steel imports; yet the Europeans are earnestly counseling against protectionist actions. In the context of continuing financial and economic troubles around the world, stresses the European Community Delegation in Washington, D.C., "it is essential that the EU and the U.S. act responsibly in defense of free trade and avoid sending signals that might further aggravate the severe economic problems facing many of their trading partners."