US Raises Tax On Chinese Steel Imports By 522%

The US has raised the import duty on Chinese cold-rolled steel, which is used in car manufacturing, shipping containers and construction, by more than 520%.

The US Commerce Department found that Chinese companies were selling their excess steel output in the US market below cost with unfair subsidies.

There has been escalating trade tensions between the US and China, especially in the steel sector, where both American and European producers claim China has distorted world pricing by dumping excess output abroad as demand at home slows.

In 2015, China’s exports of cold-rolled steel products in the US were valued at an estimated $272.3m (£188.5m)

The US steel industry claims it has had to lay off 12,000 workers over the past year as a result of unfair competition from China.

Last year, five major US steel producers, United States Steel (NYSE: X - news) , AK Steel Corp, ArcelorMittal USA, Nucor Corp and Steel Dynamics Inc (NasdaqGS: STLD - news) , all filed a complaint to the International Trade Commission, alleging foreign companies were selling steel at unfairly low prices.

China has defended itself against the allegations, claiming the industry’s problems are due to the weak economy and says it has taken steps to reduce its steel production.

The European Union launched its own investigation of Chinese steel exports last week following protests by steelworkers.

In Britain, Tata Steel (BSE: TATASTEEL.BO - news) cited low-cost Chinese competition when it announced plans last month to sell money-losing operations that employ 20,000 people.