“III. Commitments
4. Members and Associates in the Steel Committee agree to the following guidelines:
i) To work together to address excess capacity in a swift, concrete and effective fashion;
ii) To abstain from destructive competition in official support of export credit; they agree that their policies in the field of export credits for steel plant and equipment will be fully consistent with the Arrangement on Guidelines for Officially Supported Export Credits and contribute to the avoidance of competitive subsidisation of such exports;
iii) To refrain from domestic policies to sustain steel firms during crisis periods shift the burden of adjustment to other countries and thus increase the likelihood of restrictive trade actions by other countries (e.g. by artificially stimulating exports or by artificially displacing imports). Further, as a general rule, domestic measures should not prevent marginal facilities from closing in those instances where the facilities cannot become commercially viable within a reasonable period of time;
iv) To make every effort to provide effective programmes to assist steel workers affected by structural adjustments to find alternative employment. To this end, they will periodically exchange information on the effectiveness of policies and programmes to assist steel workers and communities;
v) To report promptly any action to restrict trade in steel-making materials and allow for consultation with affected parties.”