Following a recent announcement by the Mexican government to apply a 15 percent import tariff for certain steel products, Mexican steel producers are now teaming up to extend the levies for other products.
Despite seeing the government’s move as positive, the president of Canacero, the local steel chamber, said the measure isn’t sufficient to protect the nation’s steel industry against the threat of the Chinese imports, which have accounted for nearly 50 percent of the country’s steel consumption so far this year.
Deacero’s president, Raul Gutierrez, said the group of steelmakers is working on new trade cases, which could include rebar, as well as other products. Minera Autlan is reportedly to be filing an AD case in order to protect the nation’s ferroalloys market, while Tenaris is said to be fighting to defend its products. AHMSA, which is also part of the group of steelmakers looking to apply for tariffs for the foreign steel, is expected to complain about unfair imports of flat steel and seamless tubes.
But despite the already known fight against Chinese imports, Mexico, and more notably AHMSA, should also target other countries, including the close ones. AHMSA is said to be filling AD cases against Latin America’s Brazil, Japan and India.
All these claims should add up to the other 28 complaints local steelmakers filed to protect their market.