Quoting administration and industry sources, the Washington Post said the decision had already been taken, while the Wall Street Journal said it was widely expected.

Although officials said that President Bush could still make changes to the plan, a source close to the White House said it was "all but set in stone," the Post reported.

A spokesman for the White House denied any decision had been made to repeal the tariffs, which have led to threats from the European Union and other World Trade Organization (WTO) states of billions of dollars in retaliatory sanctions.

"The matter is still under review and we'll make announcements when there are announcements to make," the spokesman told Reuters.

Speculation that President Bush, who faces re-election next year, could ditch the duties mounted late last week when Washington sought and obtained a delay in a key WTO meeting to rubber-stamp a trade court ruling that the levies were illegal.

The session of the WTO's disputed settlement body, initially set for Monday, was postponed for nine days until December 10 to give the United States more time to drop the duties.

"The only question is when (the duties go)," David Phelps, president of the American Institute for International Steel, which represents importers, told Reuters.

U.S. steel using companies have added their voices to the international calls for an end to the duties, saying that they have driven up costs.

The WSJ, which cited steel company sources for its report, said President Bush was unlikely to announce anything until after he had visited the steel state of Pennsylvania on Tuesday.

The European Union, which says it is ready to hit back with its own levies on $2.2 billion of U.S. goods, reacted cautiously to the reports.

"We have not heard anything. The most important thing is that Bush takes the right decision. We are waiting for him to do so," said European Commission spokeswoman Arancha Gonzalez.