BHP Steel accuses Asian countries of dumping steel

BHP Steel accuses Asian countries of dumping steel

Agence France-Presse, Melbourne

BHP Steel said on Wednesday it would file anti-dumping charges
against Japan, China, South Korea and Indonesia due to imports of
carbon steel heavy plates.

Australia's biggest steel-maker said it had placed a complaint
before the customs department earlier this month but had
withdrawn it at the department's request, for further
clarification.

A new application would be lodged next week, said a
spokeswoman for BHP Steel Ltd., which was demerged from Anglo-
Australian resources giant BHP Billiton in the middle of last
year.

The documents are expected to be filed on Feb. 24.

A Sydney steel analyst said the market for carbon steel heavy
plates in Asia was tight.

"Demand compared to supply is quite strong," he said.

"I think steel plate prices are going to rise. This
(complaint) would not be about too much product on the market it
would be about price... probably accusing companies of selling at
marginal cost just to keep their volumes up.

"It will be up to BHP Steel to demonstrate the plates are
being imported below production cost or below what they're
selling at on the domestic market of the country of origin."

The number of actions relating to unfair trade practice in the
steel industry has accelerated around the globe since March last
year when the United States and Europe introduced tough new
safeguard measures and high tariffs on steel imports.

The Australian steel industry has been in talks with the
federal government over the past 11 months to ensure any impact
on the local and regional steel trade was minimized.

On Jan. 29, BHP Steel was granted an exemption from China's
safeguard measures for two of its products, allowing the steel-
maker to increase its volume of painted steel exports into China
from 60,000 tons (66,000 tons) in 2002 to an expected 100,000
tons in 2003.