The Eurasian Economic Commission's (EEC) Department for Internal Market Protection has proposed the imposition of a 25.2 percent safeguard duty on imports of tinplate into the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) for a period of three years.
The EEC concluded that there had been increased imports of tinplate into the EAEU, that unforeseen developments had contributed to this increase and that the higher imports had caused serious injury to the EAEU industry. The investigation was launched on March 4, 2026, following an application filed by Russia-based Metalloprokatnaya Kompaniya and supported by Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works (MMK).
The period used to determine increased imports and serious injury was January 1-December 31, 2025, while trends in the EAEU industry were assessed over the 2023-2025 period.
Safeguard duty to be reduced annually
According to the EEC, the 25.2 percent duty was calculated as the level required to eliminate the price difference between the constructed price of EAEU-produced tinplate and the price of imported tinplate.
The commission proposed applying the measure for three years. Since the proposed duration exceeds one year, the duty would be progressively liberalized by one percentage point after each year of application. Accordingly, the rate would initially stand at 25.2 percent and would subsequently be reduced in annual steps.
The EEC stated that the three-year period should be sufficient to eliminate the serious injury suffered by the domestic industry and facilitate its adjustment to changing competitive conditions.
EEC finds sharp increase in tinplate imports
The commission found that tinplate imports increased suddenly, sharply, recently and significantly, both in absolute terms and relative to EAEU production. In 2025, the ratio of imports to EAEU tinplate production stood at 28-40 percent, compared with 22-37 percent in 2024. Meanwhile, the ratio of imports to apparent consumption increased to 20-35 percent from 18-30 percent.
The increase accelerated particularly in the second half of 2025. In the fourth quarter, the ratio of imports to EAEU production reached 48-60 percent, exceeding both the corresponding period of the previous year and the highest annual level recorded during the investigation period.
The EEC also found that EAEU tinplate production declined over the investigation period. With 2023 indexed at 100, production fell to 84-99 in 2024 and further to 73-88 in 2025.
China accounts for almost all EAEU tinplate imports
China was by far the main supplier of imported tinplate during the period under review. Its share of EAEU tinplate imports stood within a range of 88-100 percent to 93-100 percent between 2023 and 2025, reaching 95-100 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025. Turkey accounted for only a limited share of imports, while EU supplies virtually disappeared during the period.
The EEC stated that the rapid increase in imports coincided with a growing concentration of supplies from China.
