European Union and Japan to retaliate 201 safeguard measures

European Union and Japan to retaliate 201 safeguard measures

According to the recent market news, it is reported that President Bush is likely to terminate 201 safeguard measures regarding imports of steel products into US at the end of 2003. The European Union (EU) already imposed punitive tariff worth $2.2 billion, however unless 201 safeguard measures are terminated, EU plans to revise the list of US products, which is prepared as retaliatory against 201 measures with tariffs ranging between 8% to 30%. Moreover, Japanese Iron&Steel Federation is also considering to impose retaliatory tariffs by the end of this year. In July 2003, World Trade Organization (WTO) published its determination that the safeguard duties implemented by US in March 2002 to protect domestic steel industry are violating the global trade rules. The final conclusion on the issue will be made early next week.