Turkish Steel Exporters' Association (CIB) chairman Namık Ekinci has commented on new US president Donald Trump’s trade policies in terms of the effects on steel imports into the US, stating that the US is the key playmaker for the global economic order and this role burdens Mr. Trump with a responsibility not only for his own country but also for the entire world.
According to Mr. Ekinci, the CIB thinks the Trump administration will not violate rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in principle and is convinced that they will never tolerate subsidized and dumped products. However, he added that world trade will be crippled and the weakening of trade ethics will be accelerated if the Trump administration continues to ignore WTO rules and unfairly imposes measures against products imported without dumping and subsidies such as Turkish steel products. The unfair measures on steel imports will hamper the development of the US industry and inflict significant harm on US domestic industry in the medium run, Mr. Ekinci stated.
Mr. Ekinci also said that, considering that US steel production stood at 72 million mt in the first 11 months of 2016 according to the US International Trade Commission (USITC) data, while consumption was 100 million mt and imports amounted to 38 million mt in the same period, and the CIB estimates that the US will have to import steel in order to realize its promised investments. “If the Trump administration prefers to block imports duly performed under the WTO rules, the reduction in steel supply will cause prices in the country to surge. The price surge will increase costs for those industries using steel and, moreover, the domestic steel industry will have ensured a sort of profit transfer from the public and the state,” Mr. Ekinci added.