The Time is Now for Meaningful Commitments on Capacity Reductions, SMA Chairman Says
08/26/2016 - In spite of new trade laws and a spate of anti-dumping cases, unfairly traded steel imports continue to pose significant challenges for U.S. steelmakers, the chairman of the Steel Manufacturers Association said on Friday.
Speaking during a news conference, Tracy Porter, who also is president of Commercial Metals Co.’s Americas division, pointed out that overall U.S. production is down by slightly more than 1 percent from the same time last year and that mill utilization rates have consistently lagged the global rates as the market remains awash in imports.
“U.S. markets, which are open and relatively strong, continue to be flooded with offshore imports from a range of nations and in virtually every product category. American steel producers, the workforce, and surrounding communities bear the brunt of global overcapacity,” Porter told reporters.
Porter said the world’s excess steelmaking capacity continues to be the root of the problem, and he expects the issue to be a topic of significant discussion during the Group of 20 summit, set for 4-5 September in China.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development also is expected to revisit the matter during a high-level discussion set for September.
Porter said that for any discussion on overcapacity to be meaningful, the participants, China especially, will have to focus the talk on net capacity reductions. Too often, he said, China has lopped capacity in one place, only to add it in another.
He also said that commitments to cut capacity need to be transparent and verifiable.
“Trade cases and remedies have helped in some instances, but they alone will not solve the problem. We urge the administration to keep the overcapacity issue front-and-center in multilateral forums,” Porter said. “The time has come for the dialogue to result in meaningful, transparent commitments that yield significant net capacity reduction.”
“U.S. markets, which are open and relatively strong, continue to be flooded with offshore imports from a range of nations and in virtually every product category. American steel producers, the workforce, and surrounding communities bear the brunt of global overcapacity,” Porter told reporters.
Porter said the world’s excess steelmaking capacity continues to be the root of the problem, and he expects the issue to be a topic of significant discussion during the Group of 20 summit, set for 4-5 September in China.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development also is expected to revisit the matter during a high-level discussion set for September.
Porter said that for any discussion on overcapacity to be meaningful, the participants, China especially, will have to focus the talk on net capacity reductions. Too often, he said, China has lopped capacity in one place, only to add it in another.
He also said that commitments to cut capacity need to be transparent and verifiable.
“Trade cases and remedies have helped in some instances, but they alone will not solve the problem. We urge the administration to keep the overcapacity issue front-and-center in multilateral forums,” Porter said. “The time has come for the dialogue to result in meaningful, transparent commitments that yield significant net capacity reduction.”
