歐洲鋼鐵製造商呼籲強化貿易防禦

Europe’s steelmakers are urging EU leaders to take a tougher stance on unfair trade to help preserve the industry on the continent at a time when it is under pressure from cheap Chinese imports.

歐洲鋼鐵製造商敦促歐盟領導人對不公平貿易採取更強硬立場，以保護遭遇中國廉價鋼材壓力的歐洲鋼鐵業。

In a letter seen by the FT, top executives from more than 50 companies - including ArcelorMittal, Tata Steel and ThyssenKrupp - have called on member states to bolster the bloc’s trade defences.

在英國《金融時報》看到的一封信中，包括安賽樂米塔爾(ArcelorMittal)、塔塔鋼鐵(Tata Steel)、蒂森克虜伯(ThyssenKrupp)在內的50多家公司的高管呼籲歐盟各成員國強化歐盟的貿易防禦。

With China seeking the coveted status as a “market economy” in trade disputes, which opponents warn would give Beijing a “licence to dump”, European steelmakers also want Brussels to adopt a position similar to the US by refusing any status that would allow dumping.

中國正在爭取貿易爭端中的“市場經濟”地位，反對者警告稱，這將賦予北京一張“傾銷許可證”。歐洲鋼鐵製造商希望布魯塞爾也採取類似美國的立場，拒絕給予可能爲傾銷開啓大門的任何地位。

The intervention comes amid ratcheting trade tensions and a rising tide of protectionism, as a popular backlash in the west against the perceived ills of globalisation grows.

此番呼籲正值貿易關係日趨緊張、保護主義不斷升溫之際，西方民衆抵制全球化在他們眼中的種種弊端。

Europe’s steel industry was battered by a collapse in prices for the metal last year, triggered by global oversupply and a wave of cheap imports into the bloc.

去年，由全球鋼材供應過剩以及大量廉價鋼材進入歐盟導致的鋼材價格暴跌，使歐洲鋼鐵業遭受重創。

China in particular is accused of distorting competition by subsidising lossmaking companies and dumping excess material on to international markets at unfairly low prices. Brussels has enacted tariffs against types of steel from a number of countries, but critics say it takes too long to act and is insufficiently robust.

中國尤其被指責通過補貼虧損的鋼廠並以不公平的低價向國際市場傾銷過剩鋼材而扭曲了競爭。布魯塞爾已對來自多個國家的多種鋼材加徵了關稅，但批評人士稱其行動太遲緩，且不夠強硬。

“EU trade defence instruments are very slow to deploy compared to our trade partners,” reads the letter, drafted by the lobby body Eurofer ahead of a European leaders’ summit in Brussels this week.

信中稱：“相比貿易伙伴，歐盟實施貿易救濟措施的速度非常慢。”這封信由遊說機構歐洲鋼鐵聯盟(Eurofer)在本週歐盟領導人在布魯塞爾舉行峯會之前起草。

“In addition, the effectiveness of the EU anti-dumping instrument is uncertain, producing measures which are significantly below the calculated size of the of the dumping, often not even a tenth of US measures”.

“此外，歐盟反傾銷手段的有效性並不確定，所採取措施相對估算的傾銷規模明顯不足，常常不及美國措施力度的十分之一。”

Demands outlined in the text include the suspension, in certain cases, of the so-called “lesser duty rule”, under which EU duties are calculated. This would in effect remove a cap on levies.

信中列出的要求包括在某些情況下暫停實施歐盟計算關稅使用的所謂“從低徵稅規則”(lesser duty rule)。此舉實際上等於取消關稅上限。

The European Commission has already proposed a strengthening of the legal tools at its disposal, but there are deep divisions among members states. Britain is among a cabal of countries opposed to the plans, first tabled in 2013, despite heavy job losses in the UK steel industry over the past year.

歐盟委員會(European Commission)已提出一個強化版法律工具供其使用，但各成員國之間存在深刻分歧。英國自該計劃2013年首次提交以來，一直是反對國家之一，儘管過去一年英國鋼鐵業工作崗位流失嚴重。

A Commission spokesperson said: “[W]e need to reinforce our trade defence instruments to be able to face the challenges of globalisation.

歐盟委員會發言人表示：“我們需要加強我們的貿易防禦手段，以便能夠面對全球化挑戰。”

“We have an unprecedented number of anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures in place on steel products and we’re making full use of the available instruments. But these are not enough”.

“我們對鋼鐵產品採取了數量空前的反傾銷和反補貼措施，而且我們充分利用了現有工具，但這些還不夠。”

The EU’s executive arm will try to unblock the legislation’s progress this week at the Brussels summit, at which trade policy will be one of the main topics.

這個歐盟執行機構將於本週在布魯塞爾峯會上試圖開啓這一立法進程，貿易政策將是此次峯會主要議題之一。

The open letter also touches on the contentious issue of China’s desire to be classified as a market economy, a status that Beijing says it is automatically entitled to obtain at the end of the year under World Trade Organisation rules. Supporters such as the UK say it would boost investment between Europe and China, but detractors believe it would become harder to impose tariffs.

公開信還談到中國想獲得市場經濟地位的爭議性問題，北京方面表示根據世界貿易組織(WTO)規則，中國應該在今年底自動獲得該資格。英國等支持者表示這將推動歐洲與中國之間的投資，但批評者認爲這將加大徵收關稅的難度。

While the debate in Europe has moved on from a simple binary answer to the question, steelmakers want the EU’s anti-dumping regulation to include the bloc’s own criteria for when a country is a market economy, with the burden of proof remaining on exporters into the single market.

儘管歐洲的辯論已超越對這個問題的簡單二元答案，但鋼鐵商希望歐盟的反傾銷法規包括該區域自己對市場經濟國家的認定標準，舉證責任仍落在向歐盟單一市場出口的出口商身上。

The Eurofer letter also calls for a more favourable treatment for the sector under the EU’s emissions trading scheme.

歐洲鋼鐵聯盟的信還呼籲在歐盟碳排放交易機制下對該行業更加優待。