The European Union, China, Japan and five other countries yesterday gave the US an extra nine days to comply with a World Trade Organisation ruling against its steel tariffs, postponing the threat of punitive trade sanctions.
The countries, all of which successfully challenged the tariffs in the WTO, accepted a US request to postpone formal adoption of the ruling from next Monday until December 10th. The US said it needed more time to complete internal consultations.
The EU has said it will impose $2.2 billion (€1.85 billion) of sanctions on US exports if Washington does not rescind the tariffs within five days of the ruling being adopted.
Diplomats said some other countries had urged the US at a meeting in Geneva yesterday to commit itself to removing the tariffs promptly if the deadline was extended. However, US diplomats said they were not authorised to give such an assurance.
The WTO ambassador of one of the countries involved said his government had supported extension of the deadline because it believed the US was preparing to scrap the tariffs.
Several non-US diplomats said they had been encouraged by pledges given in Brussels by Mr Grant Aldonas, US under-secretary of commerce for international trade, that Washington intended to comply with the WTO. - (Financial Times Service)
