Germany on Friday called on the European Commission to back its steelmakers by insisting on global trade rules in a dispute with US competitors. The US Department of Commerce has launched "dumping" proceedings against foreign steel firms, including two German producers - suspecting they may be selling stock at unfairly low prices to undercut US producers.
German manufacturers "have nothing to fear from fair competition," foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel countered in a letter to trade commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, urging Brussels to push the US to respect World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules when judging the case. "US competitors may hope that the new US government would be ready to allow them unfair dumping competition, even when that infringes the rules.