Steel War
For the exclusive use of Y. Zhuo
KEL002
Revised January 29, 2003
NABIL AL-NAJJAR AND SANDEEP BALIGA
Steel Wars:
A Battle for the Future of American Steel
In late 2001 the United States Trade Representative (USTR) submitted a request to the U.S.
International Trade Commission (ITC) to determine if the U.S. steel industry was seriously injured or threatened with serious injury as a result of recent increases in steel imports to the
United States. This request was submitted under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974. The request followed months of petitioning by the U.S. steel industry and weeks of acrimonious debate between the USTR and foreign trade representatives over potential U.S. trade action.
Your firm has been hired to assist the ITC’s commissioners in preparing its report and recommendations to the USTR. The ITC has asked your firm to help it sort through the flurry of reports from economists, domestic and foreign steel interests, and representatives of downstream steel-consuming industries. The pressure on the ITC is mounting, as 30,000 domestic steel workers are currently preparing to march on Washington, D.C., as the report deadline nears.
Domestic steel firms and the United Steelworkers of America (the steelworkers’ union) have called this a battle for the future of American steel. It is a battle that pits many competing domestic and foreign groups against one another: domestic versus foreign steel firms; U.S. versus foreign governments; as well as steel-producing versus steel-consuming domestic firms.
Recent Events in the U.S. Steel Market
Exhibit 1 and Exhibit 2 show domestic shipments and foreign imports of steel in the U.S. market, while Exhibit 3 shows U.S. employment in the steel industry. Exhibit 1 notes that steel imports spiked in mid-1998 as a result of worldwide overcapacity during the Asian economic crisis. Exhibits 2 and 3 indicate that steel employment has been falling steadily since the early
1980s;
KEL002
Revised January 29, 2003
NABIL AL-NAJJAR AND SANDEEP BALIGA
Steel Wars:
A Battle for the Future of American Steel
In late 2001 the United States Trade Representative (USTR) submitted a request to the U.S.
International Trade Commission (ITC) to determine if the U.S. steel industry was seriously injured or threatened with serious injury as a result of recent increases in steel imports to the
United States. This request was submitted under Section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974. The request followed months of petitioning by the U.S. steel industry and weeks of acrimonious debate between the USTR and foreign trade representatives over potential U.S. trade action.
Your firm has been hired to assist the ITC’s commissioners in preparing its report and recommendations to the USTR. The ITC has asked your firm to help it sort through the flurry of reports from economists, domestic and foreign steel interests, and representatives of downstream steel-consuming industries. The pressure on the ITC is mounting, as 30,000 domestic steel workers are currently preparing to march on Washington, D.C., as the report deadline nears.
Domestic steel firms and the United Steelworkers of America (the steelworkers’ union) have called this a battle for the future of American steel. It is a battle that pits many competing domestic and foreign groups against one another: domestic versus foreign steel firms; U.S. versus foreign governments; as well as steel-producing versus steel-consuming domestic firms.
Recent Events in the U.S. Steel Market
Exhibit 1 and Exhibit 2 show domestic shipments and foreign imports of steel in the U.S. market, while Exhibit 3 shows U.S. employment in the steel industry. Exhibit 1 notes that steel imports spiked in mid-1998 as a result of worldwide overcapacity during the Asian economic crisis. Exhibits 2 and 3 indicate that steel employment has been falling steadily since the early
1980s;