USTR Blasts Work of G-20's Steel Overcapacity Global Forum

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said it would like the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity to be able to restore a healthy market for global steel by reducing excess capacity, but after a meeting Sept. 20 in Argentina of officials from countries around the world, it is not confident it's going to work. The forum began nearly two years ago.

"Unfortunately, what we have seen to date leaves us questioning whether the Forum is capable of delivering on these objectives," a USTR news release said. "We do not see an equal commitment to the process from all Forum members. Commitments to provide timely information critical to the proper functioning of the Forum’s work, for example, have gone unfulfilled. More importantly, we have yet to see any concrete progress toward true market-based reform in the economies that have contributed most to the crisis of excess capacity in the steel sector."

Deputy USTR Jeffrey Gerrish led the U.S. delegation. The statement did not mention China by name, but it's no secret that the U.S. believes China is the country at fault. The statement said the market will come back into balance "only when those that have created this problem act to remove subsidies and other measures that distort markets and create serious global imbalances, and take action to eliminate excess capacity."

The European Union saw the meeting differently. Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmstrom, who failed to convince the U.S to spare Europe from steel tariffs, said, "The global challenge of overcapacity has strained trade relations and the global trade architecture to its breaking point. Progress in this Forum at this sensitive time demonstrates that multilateral cooperation is not only possible, but that it is actually the best tool to tackle global challenges."