Commenting on reduction of the 50 percent duty in the US on Turkish steel imports to 25 percent, Turkish Steel Exporters’ Association (CIB) president Adnan Aslan has said that the reduction of the import duty is a positive step but will not be enough to achieve the same export figures as before the 50 percent duty was imposed.
Mr. Aslan pointed out that, since the duty hike to 50 percent in August last year, US steel production capacity utilization has increased by 10 percent and the steel imports to the US have declined by 48 percent. He stated that, because of the additional duties, countries such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Algeria started to export to the US, instead of key exporting countries. He underlined that, amid these developments, the reduction of the duty does not mean that Turkey will start exporting to the US as it used to do in the past. “The US market is not in the same situation as when we left it. It will be difficult for us to regain our old market share and export figures,” said Aslan.
Additionally, the CIB chairman recalled that the US is preparing to fully exclude Canada and Mexico from the Section 232 duties, adding, “This exclusion would provide an important advantage for these two competitor countries which are among the key suppliers. Therefore, although we think the reduction of the duty is positive, we do not foresee a complete recovery of our US market share.”