Posted on 12/23/2003 11:14:07 AM PST by nypokerface
WASHINGTON, Dec 23 (Reuters) - U.S. steel imports in November fell 34.1 percent from the same month a year ago, the government said on Tuesday despite the Bush administration's repeal of tariffs it imposed last year.
U.S. November steel imports fell to 1.661 metric tons from 2.520 million in November 2002, the U.S. Commerce Department said.
In its preliminary data for November, the department also said that imports fell 3.6 percent from 1.723 million metric tons in October. Imports in October were revised upward from 1.543 million metric tons.
The Commerce report includes cumulative imports only for the first 10 months of the year. It said steel imports through October totaled 17.713 million metric tons, off 27.8 percent from 24.525 million in the first 10 months of 2002.
The largest commodity decreases through October were in blooms, billets and slabs, wire rods and hot rolled sheets, Commerce said. The largest country decreases from the same 2002 period were with Brazil, Russia, Mexico and Japan.
The Commerce Department figures are reported on a census basis and are not seasonally adjusted.
Earlier this month, President George W. Bush eliminated tariffs on steel products of up to 30 percent that were originally set to last until March 2005.
The move to repeal the tariffs, which were imposed in March 2002, angered some U.S. steel companies but warded off threats from trading partners in Asia and the European Union.
The European Union had threatened the United States with sanctions valued at $2.2 billion after the World Trade Organization ruled the tariffs were illegal and set a Dec. 27 deadline for their repeal.
A recent renewal of subsidies to U.S. steel companies, however, reignited threats. Before Congress adjourned for the year, the U.S. House of Representatives extended for an additional two years a loan program designed to aid struggling steel companies.
The WTO rejected the loan program in January. With Congress adjourned, the United States may not meet the WTO's deadline.
The United States is expected to challenge any retaliation figure presented by the trading partners, a move that would require the WTO to appoint an arbitrator to determine the final amount.
U.S. steel imports in November fell 34.1 percent from the same month a year ago, the government said on Tuesday despite the Bush administration's repeal of tariffs it imposed last year.
The tariffs were still in effect in November.
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