U.S. Probes Japan, S. Korea Steel Imports

The U.S. government moved a step closer to imposing duties on certain steel products from Japan and South Korea but dropped cases against Germany and Spain. The U.S. International Trade Commission, an independent federal agency, said in a preliminary decision that imports of structural steel beams from Japan and South Korea may injure U.S. producers. The beams are widely used in the construction industry. U.S. steelmakers allege that foreign producers are dumping the beams and several other steel products in the U.S. at below fair market value. The decision clears the way for the Commerce Department to investigate imports from Japan and South Korea. If Commerce and the International Trade Commission side with U.S. producers in their final rulings, punitive duties could be slapped on steel beam imports from those two countries.