US, Australia, China address steel glut

Malcolm Turnbull and Barack Obama have committed to work together on addressing the steel glut, which is affecting US and Australian jobs.

US President Barack Obama, Australia Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull

Malcolm Turnbull and Barack Obama have committed to work together on addressing the steel glut. (AAP)

China and the United States will work with Australia to address the overproduction and dumping of steel.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has spoken on the phone with US President Barack Obama about the issue, which threatens jobs in Australia.

The issue was also raised with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during Mr Turnbull's recent trip.

The prime minister said the steel glut was impacting on steelmakers in the US as well as Australia.

"We discussed the position in Whyalla as a very highlighted example of the challenges that we're facing through these very low steel prices," Mr Turnbull told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday.

"The president and I have agreed that Australia and the US will intensify our collaboration to ensure that the overproduction of steel is addressed."

China had already committed to reducing its steel production by 150 million tonnes a year.

"It is important that the viability of steelmakers in our country, and in the US and other nations, is preserved and not undermined by the exporting or the dumping of very cheap steel made in places where it is being produced at way below the real cost," Mr Turnbull said.

The two leaders also discussed the fight against Islamic State and the maritime dispute in the South China Sea.

Mr Obama told the prime minister he was confident the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal could be ratified by Congress by the end of the year.

And the president thanked Australia for its Paris climate summit commitments with both leaders pledging to work with each other to meet the new targets.


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world