CANADA TO MONITOR STEEL IMPORTS, EXPORTS Canada plans to monitor steel shipments flowing in and out of the country in an attempt to appease concerns in the U.S. over the high level of Canadian steel exports, Trade Minister Pat Carney said. "To help maintain our open access to the U.S. steel market, the government is taking further action to ensure we have more accurate data on exports and imports and that Canada is not used as a backdoor to the U.S. market by offshore suppliers," Carney said. Carney also said Canadian companies were being asked to exercise prudence in the U.S. market and both countries were considering establishing a joint commission to study the growing steel problem. Carney told the House of Commons she will soon announce an amendment to the Exports and Imports Permits Act to set up the monitoring program. Canadian steel shipments to the U.S. have risen to 5.7 pct cent of the U.S. market in recent months, almost double the level just two years ago, Canadian trade officials said. The increase in Canadian shipments comes at a time of growing anger in the U.S. over rising steel imports from several countries in the face of a decline in the domestic steel industry. Some U.S. lawmakers have proposed Canada's share of the American market be limited to 2.4 pct.