The European Steel Association (EUROFER) has stated that US President Trump has chosen the most disruptive option among those recommended by his Secretary of Commerce, namely, a prohibitive tariff instead of a quota that would have allowed close US trade partners and allies including the EU countries to maintain their traditional presence in the US market.
"From one day to the next, EU steel exports to the US - which were at 5 million mt in 2017 - will be cut drastically by an estimated 50 percent or more. The same will happen with all other countries exporting steel to the US. We expect that the tariff could restrict US imports by up to 20-25 million mt overall. This would represent a volume representing more than half the total EU imports of 2017 (40 million mt)", said Axel Eggert, director general of EUROFER.
"In the current context of massive global excess steel capacity, markets will be forced to take preventive contingency actions to avoid domestic market disruption from trade deflection", added Mr. Eggert.
EUROFER stated that it is calling for a continued focus by governments on addressing the root causes of global excess capacity, including recommendations for strong subsidy and government support disciplines pursued in the frame of the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity meeting on March 7-9 in Paris.
EUROFER also welcomed the announcement of the European Commission that appropriate and swift measures will be taken to safeguard interests and jobs in the European steel industry.