The European Commission has announced that the European Union (EU) has requested consultations with the United States (US) concerning the import adjustments that the US recently introduced on certain steel and aluminum products in the form of additional import duties. The commission has stated that these measures adversely affect exports of these goods from the EU to the US.
In the consultation request, it is stated that EU considers that Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act of 1962 is inconsistent with US obligations and rights set out in the WTO Agreement. These measures appear to nullify or impair the benefits accruing to the EU directly or indirectly under the covered agreements.
Meanwhile, last month the EU notified the WTO that it might apply retaliation measures on certain US products from June 20 onwards, adding that the measures would continue to apply until the safeguard measures of the US are lifted.