Ahead of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Steel Committee meeting being held later this month, the European Steel Association (EUROFER) has warned that the explosive growth in exports from third countries, such as Iran, India, South Korea, Turkey and others, risks undermining the progress made in deploying trade defense tools to stabilize the industry against massive dumping from China.
EUROFER director general Axel Eggert stated that imports currently make up a share of 25 percent of the EU market, with imports having risen by nine percent in the second half of 2016, which is a record high, despite the impact of trade defense measures in reducing the volume of Chinese imports coming into the EU. According to Mr. Eggert, Chinese imports are being replaced by those from other countries. For example, Iranian exports of steel to the EU amounted 117,000 mt in 2012 and increased to 1.1 million mt in 2016.
“The European Commission, in undertaking its role as the operator of Europe’s trade defense tools, has managed to cool off the massive surge of Chinese exports to the EU that flooded the market in 2015-16. However, it must also tackle the rise of dumped imports from other countries, which is a real and growing threat to the future of the European steel industry. Foreign trading partners cannot be permitted to seek profit by circumventing the rules of free and fair trade at Europe’s expense,” concluded Mr. Eggert.