(Reuters photo)President Donald Trump's move to investigate whether steel imports are threatening US national security could lead to new US protectionist measures that would have a widespread impact on the Asian steel industry. However, "subsidies" are difficult to prove, so countervailing duties are frequently challenged at the World Trade Organization, Mr Vikrom noted. The current investigation could give the president broad legal power to block steel products from any country. In 2016, it imported 22 million tonnes so there was more than a 20% drop in steel imports. The output cuts in fact started in 2016 but operating capacity actually increased by a net 36.5 million tonnes even though government figures showed 85 million tonnes shut down.

Source: Bangkok Post May 01, 2017 09:56 UTC