Trade ministers agreed to open sector platforms on cars, batteries, chemicals, foundational chips and solar panels. Senior officials met on the sidelines of the OECD Trade Committee.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative said on 7 October that 14 economies joined the United States in a joint ministerial statement on structural excess capacity in manufacturing. The signing followed talks on the margins of the OECD Trade Committee and built on the G20 trade ministerial in Milwaukee on 30 September and 1 October.
The signatories listed by USTR are Argentina, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Poland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom and the United States. The statement says they will work in dedicated sector platforms and calls on countries to stop non-market policies that sustain excess capacity.
Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade published the joint text on 8 October. It names the first sectors as autos and electric vehicles, batteries, chemicals, foundational semiconductors, and solar panels. Senior officials were meeting that day at the OECD committee to start the work.
The ministers said they would meet at technical level before December 2026 to draft terms of reference, share non-confidential data, and identify gaps, using OECD and other sources. They invited countries inside and outside the OECD to join.
Ambassador Jamieson Greer said many economies had raised excess capacity sustained by non-market policies during the U.S. G20 presidency. The releases do not set tariffs or name a target country.
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- Ambassador Jamieson Greer said numerous economies had raised structural excess capacity sustained by non-market policies.