Trade Cases
European Commission Institutes Safeguard Measures on Steel Imports
Written by Sandy Williams
July 19, 2018
The European Commission has announced it will impose provisional steel quotas to prevent steel imports from being diverted from the U.S. to Europe.
The safeguard measures will go into effect July 19 and will remain in place for a maximum of 200 days. The provisional measures will affect 23 steel product categories and take the form of a Tariff Rate Quota. A 25 percent tariff will be placed only after imports exceed the three-year average and will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis. The measures will cover all countries except those with limited imports to the EU and the European Economic Area countries of Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström said: “The U.S. tariffs on steel products are causing trade diversion, which may result in serious harm to EU steelmakers and workers in this industry. We are left with no other choice than to introduce provisional safeguard measures to protect our domestic industry against a surge of imports. These measures nevertheless ensure that the EU market remains open and will maintain traditional trade flows. I am convinced that they strike the right balance between the interest of EU producers and users of steel, like the automotive industry and the construction sector, who rely on imports. We will continue to monitor steel imports in order to take a final decision by early next year, at the latest.”
Comments will be taken into consideration toward a determination of final definitive measures. The European Commission hopes to conclude that investigation by early 2019.
Twelve steel product categories covered by the provisional safeguard measures are currently subject to anti-dumping and countervailing duties (e.g., China, Russia, Ukraine). In order to avoid the imposition of “double remedies,” whenever the tariff quota is exceeded, the Commission will consider the suspension or the reduction of the level of these duties to ensure that the combined effect of these measures does not exceed the highest level of the safeguard or anti-dumping/anti-subsidy duties in place.
The safeguards are part of a three-pronged response to U.S. tariffs on steel an aluminum that include “rebalancing measures” imposed on June 20 and legal action filed with the World Trade Organization on June 1.
The measure was welcomed by the European Steel Association (Eurofer) and the European Steel Tube Association, but was condemned by European automakers who fear the tariffs will push elevated steel prices even higher.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Trade Cases
Nippon respects HR dumping decision, expects lower rate in next review
Nippon Steel says it respects the US Department of Commerce’s findings in administrative reviews despite the agency recently assigning the Japanese steelmaker a higher dumping margin.
CRU: Trump tariffs could stimulate steel demand
Now that the dust has settled from the US election, as have the immediate reactions in the equity, bond, and commodity markets, this is a prime opportunity to look at how a second Trump presidency might affect the US steel market.
Rebar import duties to continue for 5 more years
Import duties on rebar from a handful of countries will continue to be collected for at least another five years.
Leibowitz: Trump 2.0 signals Cold War 2.0 trade and China policies
China is one of the elephants in the room as the transition to Trump 2.0 continues. While the people and policies are still being formulated, it’s possible to detect a strategy for the new Trump administration. I think there are two imperative issues that the new administration needs to balance. The Trump strategy will, I believe, follow the following points. First, trade is one of the issues that got President Trump elected in 2016 and 2024—it nearly got him elected in 2020, save for the pandemic. If President Trump had won in 2020, I might be writing chronicles about the end of his eight years in the White House now instead of projecting what the next Trump administration would accomplish or break. Oh, well—that’s life. Trade will necessarily be a key feature of relations with China for the next four years.
Commerce says Nippon dumped steel in US in 2022-23
Commerce determined a significant dumping margin for hot-rolled steel imports from Japan's Nippon Steel.