EUROMETAL has warned that a regulatory gap is putting European manufacturers of steel-intensive products at a competitive disadvantage against non-EU suppliers. While imported steel is subject to trade measures and carbon-related costs, finished goods manufactured outside the EU do not necessarily face equivalent obligations when entering the bloc. The association will bring the issue to the attention of EU policymakers in Brussels on September 7 through its European Convoy for Industrial Competitiveness, calling for a level playing field across the entire manufacturing value chain.
According to EUROMETAL, the imbalance stems from the different treatment applied to steel imports and finished steel-intensive products manufactured outside the EU. Steel entering the European market is subject to quotas, trade measures and carbon costs under the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), while finished products from third countries may enter the bloc without facing equivalent trade and carbon-related requirements.
As a result, a European manufacturer producing a steel-based product may face higher regulatory and decarbonization costs than a non-EU competitor exporting the finished product to the European market. EUROMETAL argues that this imbalance weakens the competitiveness of European manufacturing and may encourage companies to relocate production outside the EU.
The association warned that, if the trend continues, it could lead to plant closures and further production relocation, affecting employment, investment, industrial know-how, value creation and demand for European steel. The gradual erosion of Europe's manufacturing base could also undermine strategic industrial capabilities needed for infrastructure, defence and the green transition.
EUROMETAL is therefore calling for a level playing field across the entire manufacturing value chain, arguing that European industrial policy should prevent regulatory requirements on steel and domestic manufacturing from translating into a competitive advantage for finished products imported from third countries.
The association will take this message to Brussels on September 7, when companies, workers, business associations and other industry representatives from across Europe will participate in the European Convoy for Industrial Competitiveness.
