BEIJING - The United States has employed "unfair methods" during an anti-dumping investigation into Chinese cold-rolled steel products and should rectify its mistakes as soon as possible, China's commerce ministry said on Wednesday.
The United States on Tuesday said it would impose duties of more than 500 percent on Chinese cold-rolled flat steel, which is widely used for cars body panels, appliances and construction.
China expressed "strong dissatisfaction" with the ruling, the Ministry of Commerce said.
"The United States adopted many unfair methods during the anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese products, including the refusal to grant Chinese state-owned firms a differentiated tax rate," the ministry said in a statement posted on its website.
"China urges the United States to strictly obey World Trade Organisation rules and rectify its mistaken methods as soon as possible," it added.
Since 2015, the United States has taken frequent trade remedy measures, trying to shift its domestic steel industry hardships abroad, violating the principles of the WTO and disrupting the order of the steel trade, it said.
The steel industry faces global challenges. Resorting to protectionism will not solve the problem, it said.
On Tuesday, the US Commerce Department set final anti-dumping duties of 265.79 percent and anti-subsidy duties of 256.44 percent on imports of cold-rolled flat steel from China.
Also on Wednesday, China's Ministry of Finance said China will make 100 billion yuan (US$15.3 billion) of subsidies to steel and coal companies cutting capacity.
The funds will mainly be used to resettle laid-off workers, a statement said.
Mergers, acquisitions, debt restructuring and bankruptcy should guide the exit of weak steel and coal companies that cannot make a profit.
China should also take "a combination of measures" to resolve overcapacity, including tax, land, fiscal and financial reform, according to the statement.
In the past three years, China has eliminated more than 90 million tons of steel capacity and over 200 million tons of coal capacity.
