China investigating European, Korean steel imports

BEIJING (AP) – China has launched a trade investigation of steel from Europe and South Korea, potentially complicating efforts to recruit them as allies in its tariff dispute with U.S. President Donald Trump.

The Commerce Ministry said Monday it would look into whether some stainless steel products from the European Union, South Korea, Japan and Indonesia are being sold at improperly low prices and should be subject to anti-dumping duties.

Chinese leaders have tried, so far without success, to rally support from European leaders and South Korean businesspeople against Trump’s tariff hikes on imports from China in a dispute over Beijing’s technology policy.