US Commerce Secretary Don Evans said yesterday the US may agree to grant more exclusions from steep steel tariffs that have caused a global uproar and threats of retaliation.
Evans is on a two-day tour of China, which is one of six members of the WTO that have brought the US tariffs before the WTO's dispute settlement mechanism.
"We will continue to listen to requests for exclusions from countries around the world," he said at a briefing here.
"Many exclusions have already been granted. We will continue to consider more."
US President George W. Bush in March announced a plan to impose tariffs of between eight and 30 percent on steel imports. Excepted from the tariffs were countries such as Canada and Mexico, which have free trade agreements with Washington.
Evans' visit, at the head of a high-powered business delegation, is aimed at boosting economic ties with China.
It takes place amid a series of festering issues, from trade in steel and farm products to poor protection of intellectual property in the world's most populous country.
The trip also comes against the backdrop of a ballooning US deficit with China, which now stands at US$83 billion, bigger than the US deficit with any other country in the world.
Evans said that in the rapidly expanding trade between China and the US, steel plays a minuscule part, accounting for 0.1 percent of Chinese exports to US markets.
The tariffs are part of a wider US effort to create "a level playing field" in global steel markets, are consistent with WTO rules, and follow long deliberation of the plight of US producers, he said.
"Our primary responsibility is to enforce our trade laws, and enforce the laws of our country," he said. "And that's simply what we did here."
Addressing another recent flashpoint in the Sino-US trade relationship, Evans expressed confidence about the future of US soybean exports to China.
"It appears that that issue has been resolved, or at least it appears now that the opportunities for us to begin to export soybeans to China is occurring," he said.
A row over soybean trade followed new Chinese regulations that require safety certificates for imports of biotechnology products.
The Chinese plans sparked howls of alarm among US exporters of soybeans, corn and cotton, and President Bush raised the matter during a visit to China in February. The US government said last month China had agreed to draw up an interim arrangement to ensure smooth imports of genetically-modified US soybeans.
"We will continue to watch how this develops, but I would say we are very encouraged by recent developments that indicate an opening in this market," Evans said.
Piracy of copyrighted products remains rampant in China, despite years of attention, according to the secretary.
"It's obviously still a problem, a big problem," he said. "We know that, and they know it, and we will stay focused on it."
RSS