Steel Trade Policies in the U.S.A. and the EC: the Past, the Present and the Future in the Framework of the WTO and vis-a-vis China in Particular

摘要

The global steel industry is in transformation as major steel producers are in the process of developing and reorganizing themselves to remain competitive in the global market. Over the last five years, we have seen the demise of historic U.S. steel producers and the growth of China's steel market. Currently, China remains an important player in the world steel market as one, if not the largest producer of steel. In 1999 it was the second largest importer of steel after the U.S. Production and employment in the steel sector have declined over the last ten years in both the U.S. and the EC, yet the sector remains vitally important from an economic standpoint. From the perspective of international trade, with the possible exception of the textile industry, the steel sector has been the most protected industry in history. Recent antidumping, subsidy and safeguard cases are nothing new and in fact, they are a continuation of a process that has been on going for the past hundred years. If anything is new, it is protectionist measures that are expanding.