US Steel Firms Ask For Continued Import Protection
(FINANCIAL EXPRESS: March 31, 2003)

US steel companies last week sought continued import protection, as the Bush administration approaches a decision later this year whether to continue the steep tariffs it imposed in 2002. In testimony prepared for a hearing in the US House of Representatives, steel industry representatives said early termination of President George W. Bush's three-year tariff program would hamper ongoing restructuring efforts to make the domestic steel industry more competitive. 'WTO Panel Finds US Steel Tariffs Break Rules' A World Trade Organisation (WTO) panel has found that hefty tariffs imposed on steel imports last year by US President George W Bush break global trade rules, diplomats said on Wednesday. The finding, at this stage only an interim ruling, has been sent for comment to Brussels, Washington, Tokyo and the capitals of several other countries that took the US to the WTO over the measure, the envoys said. In the seven- year history of the WTO, an interim ruling has never been reversed in a final sued a month later, and diplomats said this was unlikely to be an exception.