The European Commission has taken on an ongoing stainless steel trade dispute to the Court of Justice of the European Union, escalating a legal battle concerning anti-circumvention measures on stainless steel sheets and coils. The commission is appealing an earlier ruling in favor of Turkish exporter Çolakoğlu Metalurji, which had challenged EU measures aimed at preventing the circumvention of antidumping duties on stainless steel sheets and coils originating in Indonesia but shipped from Turkey. The Commission is now asking the EU’s highest court to overturn parts of the earlier ruling.
The case relates to antidumping measures imposed on stainless steel products originating from Indonesia and concerns allegations that imports were being routed through third countries to avoid duties.
The General Court found in March 2025 that the Commission had incorrectly classified the processing of stainless-steel slabs into hot-rolled sheets and coils in Turkey as an assembly operation, which is a key condition for a finding of circumvention of antidumping duties originally imposed on imports from Indonesia. The court will now have the final word on how assembly operation is to be interpreted under EU anti-circumvention rules.
Case linked to Indonesian stainless steel exports
The underlying trade dispute is connected to the rapid expansion of Indonesia’s stainless steel industry, which has become a major global exporter in recent years.
EU authorities have repeatedly raised concerns regarding:
- circumvention of antidumping duties,
- rerouting of products through third countries,
- distortions linked to subsidized production.
The outcome of the appeal could have broader implications for how the European Commission applies and enforces anti-circumvention measures in future trade defense investigations.
