Metro East Sun

Madison County Chairman Alan J. Dunstan recently commended on the U.S. Department of Commerce’s preliminary decision that steel producers in multiple countries unfairly exported steel to the United States and that duties shall be imposed on imported steel.

Dunstan said that he believes that the decision could have a strong, positive impact on U.S. Steel Corporation’s Granite City mill, which remains idle.

“The men and women at Granite City Steel produce the finest hot-rolled steel in the world but have been victimized by unfair business practices, as proven by the Department of Commerce,” Dunstan said. “All the workers laid-off from Granite City Steel want is a level playing field and to get back to work. This decision moves them one step closer to those goals.”

The Department of Commerce decided that manufacturers from foreign countries allegedly violated international trade regulations. The alleged countries include Australia, Brazil, Japan, Korea, the Netherlands, Turkey and the United Kingdom. According to the Department, these countries allegedly improperly subsidized steel producers and dumped hot-rolled steel in the U.S. market at prices below market value and that duties shall be imposed

“The resolution of this case is important and positive, but it is not a permanent solution to the problem of inferior, imported steel. We still need to do everything possible to keep this issue in the forefront with our elected officials in Washington, D.C., and with the Department of Commerce,” Dunstan said.