Beijing says the EU has made a scapegoat out of China

China condemned the European Commission for imposing new anti-dumping duties on its steel products, accusing the EU head of making an industrial "scapegoat" out of China.

The EU said Friday it will levy duties of up to 35.9 percent on Chinese hot rolled flat products in an attempt to level the playing field with China as Europeans expand their campaign to protect their steel producers.

The EU blames China, which produces more than half of the world's steel, for flooding global markets in violation of international trade agreements.

According to the European Commission, Chinese manufacturers benefit from concessional lending, tax breaks and other financial assistance, which allows exports to the EU at artificially low prices.

But China said the actions of the European bloc stemmed from a misunderstanding of China's financial lending system and trade trends.

“The European Commission ignores the fact that steel exports to Europe clearly declined in 2016, using China's overproduction as an excuse to argue that Chinese hot rolled steel products threaten to disrupt industry in the EU when this is just speculation, unlikely in reality.” Wang Hejun, an official at the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, said in a statement Friday.

"China strongly doubts the legitimacy and legality of the European Commission's decision."

The EU has faced a number of trade disputes with China, the second largest trading partner, but is also seeking to resolve the steel standoff with Beijing through the OECD.

In January, the Commission imposed anti-dumping duties on stainless steel pipes and butt-welded pipe fittings.

Mr. Wang noted that China not only refused to subsidize steel exports, but also took a number of measures to control them.