Washington DC [US], October 8 : India has joined the United States (US) and 13 other economies in signing a joint ministerial statement calling for steps to eliminate structural excess capacity and production and end non-market policies and practices that "distort markets and contribute to the problem".
The joint ministerial statement signed by the 15 participating economies was released by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) on Wednesday, following discussions among G20 Trade Ministers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on September 30 and October 1, 2026.
The signatories include Argentina, Australia, Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Mexico, Poland, Türkiye, the United Kingdom and the United States. 
"We call on all countries to take steps to eliminate structural excess capacity and production in
their economies, including by ending the use of non-market policies and practices that distort
markets and contribute to the problem. We note that in the absence of such steps, an increasing
number of countries are taking action to defend their industries, workers, and economies from
distortions resulting from such policies and practices. At the same time, we recognize that such
individual efforts will be more effective if concerned countries cooperate, share information, and
take complementary action, wherever possible," the statement read. 
The statement said G20 Trade Ministers discussed structural excess capacity and production in certain manufacturing sectors and welcomed the US G20 Presidency's focus on the issue as one of its key priorities.
It said there is increasing international recognition that structural excess capacity and production pose a "fundamental challenge" for the global economy and individual economies.
The G20 has previously discussed the issue, including in Shanghai in 2016, when Trade Ministers expressed concern about excess capacity in certain industries and its negative impact on trade and workers. They also agreed to participate by consensus in an OECD Steel Committee meeting that led to the creation of the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity (GFSEC), a cooperative platform focused on developing and implementing collective solutions to address structural excess capacity and production and enhance market function in the steel sector.
At the Hangzhou Summit later in 2016, G20 leaders unanimously recognised that structural problems, including excess capacity in some industries, had negatively affected trade and workers.
They also recognised that subsidies and other forms of support from governments or government-sponsored institutions could distort markets and contribute to global excess capacity, and committed to enhancing communication and cooperation and taking effective steps to address the challenges.
“We recognize 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. We recognize that excess capacity in steel and other industries is a global issue which requires collective responses. We also recognize that subsidies and other types of support from government or government sponsored institutions can cause market distortions and contribute to global excess capacity and therefore require attention. We commit to enhance communication and cooperation, and take effective steps to address the challenges so as to enhance market function and encourage adjustment," the statement said.
"Despite those commitments, and the efforts undertaken by some G20 members, structural excess capacity and production has worsened since 2016, harming an array of domestic industries and their supply chains," the statement added.
During the US G20 Presidency, members discussed instances of structural excess capacity and production in economies where production persistently exceeded global demand, would not have existed under market conditions, and was created, sustained or contributed to by government policies or interventions.
The statement said such excess capacity leads to overproduction and overconcentration of production, deters market-based investment, production and capacity building, and undermines market-based exports.
"We acknowledge that structural excess capacity and production in any country poses significant challenges for all of its trading partners as it distorts prices and production patterns, deters new entrants, and stymies innovation and competition," it said.
The statement also noted that such excess capacity in one country can deepen trading partners' dependence on that country's products, increasing their vulnerability to economic coercion, including arbitrary export restrictions.
The participating economies expressed concern about existing or projected structural excess capacity and production in several sectors, including autos and electric vehicles, batteries, chemicals, foundational semiconductors and solar panels.
"We are concerned that, absent timely and effective actions, structural excess capacity and production in these sectors will cripple our domestic industries, displace local production, destroy jobs, undermine our economies, hinder efforts to develop and industrialize, and ultimately lower the standard of living for our people," the statement said.
The countries called on all nations to take steps to eliminate structural excess capacity and production in their economies, including by ending non-market policies and practices that distort markets and contribute to the problem.
They also noted that, in the absence of such steps, an increasing number of countries are taking action to defend their industries, workers and economies from distortions resulting from such policies and practices.
At the same time, the signatories recognised that individual efforts would be more effective if concerned countries cooperate, share information and take complementary action wherever possible.
"To that end, we are resolved to work together in new, dedicated sectoral platforms to further examine and take effective actions that address structural excess capacity and production in key sectors of concern," the statement said, identifying autos and EVs, batteries, chemicals, foundational semiconductors and solar panels as the initial focus areas.
Senior officials of the participating economies met on the margins of the OECD Trade Committee to begin the work, and the statement invited other countries within and beyond OECD membership to join.
The countries committed to meeting before December 2026 at the technical level to develop terms of reference, share non-confidential information and data on structural excess capacity and production, its impact on the identified sectors and efforts to mitigate the damage, and identify information gaps, drawing on work by the OECD and other sources as appropriate.
They also committed to exploring effective and, wherever possible, complementary actions to defend their economies from the negative impact on trade and workers created by structural excess capacity and production.
"Working together, we aim to create the conditions necessary so that market-oriented competition in affected sectors can thrive once again," the statement said.
Separately, the USTR said that on the margins of the OECD Trade Committee, it convened senior officials of the 14 economies to begin work on addressing structural excess capacity and production in key manufacturing sectors.
"Building on the productive discussions at the G20 Trade Ministerial in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, these fourteen economies joined the United States in signing a Joint Ministerial Statement that expresses our collective resolve to work together in new, dedicated sectoral platforms to examine and take effective actions that address structural excess capacity and production in several key sectors of concern," the USTR said.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said, "Over the course of the U.S. G20 presidency, numerous economies raised instances of structural excess capacity and production in economies that persistently exceeded global demand and were sustained by foreign government's non-market policies and practices."
"Left unchecked, these issues will continue to cripple domestic industries, displace local production, and hinder our ability to raise the standard of living for workers and their families," Greer said.
"The Trump Administration will continue to engage with our trading partners to defend our domestic industries, workers, and economy from distortions resulting from these pervasive policies and practices," he added.