AIST: China Scraps Steel Export Tax

China is reducing or altogether eliminating its export tax on certain steel products, a move that likely will inflame trade tensions with the U.S. and European Union, according to reports.

According the Reuters news service, China is eliminating the tax on wire, rod and bar and lowering it on certain stainless products. The changes take effect  1 January, Reuters said, citing China’s Ministry of Finance.

The South China Morning Post reported that the decision was announced in the same week in which the U.S., European Union and Japan signed a joint statement during a World Trade Organization meeting intended to prod China into addressing overcapacity.