China criticizes New Zealand anti-subsidy probe on Chinese steel

BEIJING - New Zealand's latest investigation into Chinese galvanized steel is "discrimination" and will not help solve problems in the NZ steel industry, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on Tuesday.

The remarks came after the New Zealand government began an anti-subsidy probe on Monday into galvanized sheet steel from China.

Wang Hejun, head with the trade remedy investigation department with the MOC, said that the products involved only account for 2.5 percent to 4 percent of New Zealand's domestic market, causing no harm to the domestic industry.

New Zealand's imports of galvanized steel from China have remained around 4,000 tons, worth $3.2 million. By contrast, imports from other sources have doubled in the past two years.

Investigating such a small amount of Chinese products while ignoring imports from other sources is discrimination, he said.

It will not help to solve the problems in New Zealand's steel industry and will hamper Sino-New Zealand trade, Wang added.

China has been New Zealand's biggest source of manufactured goods for years, and now China's imports from New Zealand are growing steadily.

Wang said faltering global recovery and shrinking demand are cause of the difficult situation of the steel industry worldwide, and called on all countries to cooperate during tough times.

Protectionism is not the answer for New Zealand's steel industry and will only deal a further blow to international trade, he said.

China hopes New Zealand will use trade remedy measures in a prudent and restrained way and work with China to resolve trade issues through dialogue and communication, he said.