Japan, China Talk Steel Trade Issues

Japanese and Chinese delegations from the steel industries and governments held 18th steel dialogue on Friday in Tokyo. Chinese officials from Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China attended meeting to discuss steel issues. Chinese delegations proposed China and Japan should avoid trade restriction action by discussing the issue in the dialogue and Japan agreed to the proposal. Japanese notified Chinese overproduction and higher export but China emphasized Chinese steel production decreases under slower domestic economy growth and the export doesn’t increase.

China terminated antidumping duty on stainless cold rolled flat steel import from Japan in April. Japan and China have no trade dispute after that. Japanese asked potential Chinese antidumping file on Japanese stainless flat steel for boiler but Chinese official of Bureau of Fair Trade for Imports and Exports of Ministry of Commerce denied the attempt. However, Chinese delegations sought Japanese careful trade activity citing some cheap cold rolled flat steel import from Japan. They are sensitive on trade issues when Asian countries take trade actions recently.

Chinese asked Japanese rebuilding activity on damaged area by the major earthquake. Japanese emphasized domestic makers can supply the required steel products. On power availability, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan showed domestic steel users could shift the production to offshore plants while domestic electric furnace steel makers with nighttime operation would cope with the power situation.

Japanese delegations include officials from JFE Steel, Nippon Steel and other major steel and stainless steel makers. Chinese delegations include officials from Ministry of Commerce, China Iron & Steel Association, Baosteel Group and other major steel makers.

Japanese steel industry and METI hold dialogue with Thailand in October in Bangkok.