Trade Minister Kaoru Yosano said Tuesday he would send a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky later in the day to protest Washington's move to apply a safeguard measure to Japanese steel wire-rod imports.
In a draft of the letter, Yosano expresses "serious concern" about the proceedings on steel wire-rod imports under Section 201 of the U.S. Trade Act of 1974.
Section 201 allows the International Trade Commission to recommend that the U.S. president impose higher tariffs on foreign steel products or introduce a global quota if the ITC finds that industry has been seriously injured.
The proceedings have entered the final stage, and President Bill Clinton is to make his decision on steel wire-rod imports from Japan late this month.
Such restrictive measures "may trigger protectionist actions and thus potentially undermine our current efforts to further liberalize trade," Yosano warns in the letter, asking the Clinton administration to give "serious consideration" to Japan's concerns in formulating his decision.
Yosano adds in the letter that adopting a safeguard measure could backfire on U.S. steel users, as wire-rod imports include many specialty products that are not produced by U.S. mills.
Yosano emphasized his belief that the U.S. wire-rod industry is not facing an emergency situation that requires import restrictions.
Speaking at a press conference Tuesday, Yosano openly questioned whether it would be right for Washington to push for such measures.
"The recent series of steel problems was caused by strong demand on the part of the U.S. market. It was not the case that Japanese firms set cheap prices in a deliberate effort to flood the market with (Japanese) imports," Yosano told reporters, urging the U.S. to act in concert with global efforts to develop trade liberalization rules.