Report: Japan to Impose U.S. Steel Tariff

[HenryTo]

Everyone trying to play this down but the dangers of protectionism still rising by the day. I still don't like the steel companies as a buy here.
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Report: Japan to Impose U.S. Steel Tariff
Thursday July 28, 12:31 am ET
By Chisaki Watanabe, Associated Press Writer
Report: Japan Plans to Impose 15 Percent Retaliatory Tariff on U.S. Steel Products in September

TOKYO (AP) -- Amid reports that Tokyo will impose retaliatory steel tariffs on U.S. steel products, the government's top spokesman said Thursday that such duties would not hurt relations between the two major trading partners.

Local media reported Thursday that Japan was planning to impose a 15 percent retaliatory tariff in September on about 10 products as a countermeasure to duties imposed by the United States on Japanese steel products under the so-called Byrd amendment, an antidumping law ruled illegal by the World Trade Organization.

"Even if we implemented retaliatory tariffs, I don't think they would have a bad effect on Japan-U.S. relations," Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroyuki Hosoda told reporters.

But he declined to comment on whether Japan was considering taking such action soon.

"I would like to refrain from clarifying what kind of countermeasures we are considering," he said. "Our policy remains the same that we call for the immediate repeal (of the Byrd amendment)."

Washington placed tariffs on hot-rolled steel from Japan, Brazil and others starting in 1999 on allegations that they were selling their products at unfairly low prices.

The Byrd amendment, passed in October 2000 and named after West Virginia Senator Robert Byrd, raised such penalty tariffs and also awarded American companies the revenue collected by the U.S. government on those duties.

The World Trade Organization ruled in January 2003 that the Byrd amendment unlawfully protected the American steel industry. When it was not repealed by the end of that year, Japan, the EU and six other countries won the right to impose a total of $150 million in economic sanctions against the United States.

The Nihon Keizai newspaper, a business daily, said the retaliatory duties would be the first to be issued by Japan and could total up to about $76.3 million.

Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi tried to play down the issue.

"We are always keeping in mind that one conflict will not affect overall (relations). So we don't need to make an issue out of this," he said.