小艾摘要: WSJ(9/1) Aluminum Decision On China Is Mixed The Commerce Department on Tuesday found that the Chinese government unfairly subsidized $514 million of aluminum exports to the U.S. last year. But the U. ...
WSJ(9/1) Aluminum Decision On China Is Mixed
The Commerce Department on Tuesday found that the Chinese government unfairly subsidized $514 million of aluminum exports to the U.S. last year.
But the U.S. said it wouldn't investigate allegations that China's currency policies function as export subsidies for Chinese manufacturers of aluminum and coated paper.
The decision sets the stage for a battle on Capitol Hill, where lawmakers have been pushing to penalize China for not moving quickly enough to revalue its currency.
The currency allegations, made in connection with two trade cases, didn't meet the legal standards for initiating an investigation, according to the Commerce Department. China in June began allowing its currency to appreciate, freeing it from a de facto peg to the U.S. dollar, but the yuan has since risen just 0.3%.
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For the subsidies it deemed unfair, the Commerce Department said it would impose countervailing duties ranging from 6.2% to 137.7% of the value of the imported aluminum extrusions, shapes squeezed out of aluminum.
'We are opposed to the U.S. government's repeated practice of imposing such protectionist measures against Chinese exports, and we don't think it's helpful to the healthy growth of bilateral trade,' Chinese Embassy spokesman Wang Baodong said.
'The Commerce Department made its finding while still managing to ignore the elephant in the room, which is China's currency manipulation,' said Sen. Charles Schumer (D., N.Y.).
The Commerce Department finding is a victory for domestic aluminum extrusion companies that have been hit by the influx of Chinese imports from 2007 to 2009. The $3.57 billion domestic annual market for aluminum extrusions includes companies that assemble the extrusions for aluminum siding, door frames, bicycles and other products. China is the world's largest exporter of aluminum extrusions.
-By Meena Thiruvengadam and Robert Guy Matthews
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Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
国商务部周二裁定，中国政府去年为出口美国的铝型材提供了5.14亿美元的不正当补贴。
不过，美国说不会就中国外汇政策起到为中国铝型材和铜版纸制造商提供出口补贴的指控展开调查。
这一裁定可能在美国国会内引发一场论战。国会议员们一直在敦促就中国没有迅速升值人民币对中国进行惩罚。
据商务部说，外汇指控不满足发起调查的法律标准。外汇指控是与两起贸易案一并提起的。6月份中国开始允许人民币升值，取消了实际挂钩美元的做法，不过人民币到目前为止仅升值了0.3%。
对于商务部所认为的不正当补贴，商务部说，将对进口铝型材征收6.2%至137.7%不等的反补贴税。
中国驻美国大使馆发言人王保东说，我们反对美国政府一再对中国出口商品实施这类保护主义措施的做法，我们认为这不利于双边贸易的健康发展。
纽约州民主党参议员舒默(Charles Schumer)说，商务部在仍旧忽视中国操纵汇率这一主要问题的情况下做出了裁定。
商务部的裁定对美国国内铝型材企业来说是个胜利，2007年至2009年中国进口商品的涌入给这些企业带来了冲击。美国国内铝型材市场每年的规模有35.7亿美元，包括为铝板、门框、自行车等产品组装铝型材的企业。中国是全球最大的铝型材出口国。
Meena Thiruvengadam / Robert Guy Matthews
