Japan Eyes 100% Retaliatory Tariffs on U.S. Steel Imports

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, May 08, 2002

Japan Eyes 100% Retaliatory Tariffs on U.S. Steel Imports

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Japan is considering slapping 100% tariffs on steel imports from the United States in retaliation for the recent emergency U.S. tariffs on an array of steel imports, government sources said Wednesday.

It would be the first retaliatory action Japan has taken in any trade row.

But Tokyo plans to continue negotiations with Washington until June 17, the deadline for countries affected by the U.S. ''safeguard'' tariffs imposed May 20 to take counteraction.

The government considers the retaliatory tariffs would amount to some $5 million in the initial year, the sources said.

It will submit to the World Trade Organization (WTO) by Friday next week a list of steel products subject to the planned countervailing tariffs, they said.

Its focus on steel products is aimed at preventing other industries from being involved in the trade row stemming from a U.S. step designed to rescue struggling U.S. steelmakers, the sources said.

The Japanese action could lead to an escalation of the dispute, however, as the U.S. administration has indicated readiness to take countermeasures against such a move, which it has condemned as ''unilateral.''

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Takeo Hiranuma and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick are slated to meet again over the issue in Paris on the sidelines of an annual conference May 15-16 of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

The meeting in Paris is shaping up to be the final recourse for the two countries to resolve the matter without entering a tit-for-tat trade war.

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