Mr Thomas J Gibson president & CEO of American Iron & Steel Institute issued the following statement on recent developments regarding longstanding zeroing disputes:

"The American Iron & Steel Institute condemns the several rulings by the World Trade Organization against zeroing, a method of calculating antidumping duties that has long been applied in the United States and other countries. The practice of zeroing is nowhere prohibited in the WTO agreements, and the WTO rulings on this subject are a classic example of overreach by the WTO Appellate Body. Elimination of zeroing will make it easier for foreign producers to dump their products in the US market and injure US workers and businesses.

This is a case where the WTO Appellate Body got it wrong. United States Trade Representative Ron Kirk has emphasized that the Administration will continue to work to obtain a clarification that the WTO rules permit zeroing, which is critical to making our trade laws work. We strongly support this position by the Administration, and will continue to work with USTR and the Commerce Department to correct these errant decisions by the WTO."