A statement from the White House said that leaders at the G20 summit in Hangzhou, eastern China, on Monday accepted that overcapacity in steel and other industries is a global issue that requires a collective response.
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After a 90-minute huddle on the sidelines of an economic summit, the two leaders directed their top diplomats to return to talks quickly, likely later this week, according to a senior administration official who briefed reporters on the meeting.
Mr Obama’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping also veered into delicate territory, with a lengthy White House description detailing how Mr Obama had pressed Mr Xi to abide by an global tribunal’s ruling against China over the South China Sea.
Chinese president Xi Jinping under fire over Chinese steel exports.
“We are encouraged that the G-20 leaders are committed to forming a Global Forum on steel excess capacity, and that the leaders expect a continuing relationship with the Global Forum at relevant upcoming G-20 ministerial meetings”.
In point number 31, and without explicitly blaming Beijing, G20 leaders “recognise that the structural problems, including excess capacity in some industries, exacerbated by a weak global economic recovery and depressed market demand, have caused a negative impact on trade and workers”.
They have threatened sanctions or anti-dumping taxes on Chinese steel imports and criticized Beijing for providing subsidies, such as interest-free loans, to prop up state-owned companies.
European steel body Eurofer said it was “prudently positive” about the plan. The Paris climate deal needs to be ratified by 55 countries representing at least 55 percent of global emissions in order for the agreement to enter into force.
China has been blamed for the current global steel glut.
Xi did not shy away from highlighting the real challenges lying ahead for the G20, the researcher noted, adding that China, as the second largest economy in the world, “would focus on innovation in cooperation mechanisms”.
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The summit was frequently overshadowed by other concerns and got off to a rocky start Saturday when there was no staircase at the airport for Obama to exit his plane. “It may help to reassure countries about tangible steps China is taking”, he said. Quarrels with Chinese officials broke out on the tarmac and at other venues over access by US officials and reporters. When asked at a press conference the following day with British Prime Minister Theresa May, he said that he was not inclined to “over-crank the significance” of the string of tensions that greeted him at his arrival, noting that he has been used to it, whether in visiting China or other countries.
