The European Union agreed on the 13th of April to almost halve steel imports and impose a 50% import tariff on shipments exceeding the limit to protect the bloc’s industry from overproduction elsewhere, Reuters reports.
EU steelmakers are currently operating at 65% of capacity due to rising imports and tariffs imposed by the US president. The new measures are designed to increase capacity utilization to 80%.
Representatives of the European Parliament and the European Council agreed on the evening of the 13th of April to limit the volume of imports that are not subject to import tariffs to 18.3 million tonnes per year, which is 47% less than in 2024. Last year, the EU imported steel mainly from Turkey, South Korea, Indonesia, China, India, Ukraine and Taiwan.
EU steel is protected by guidelines introduced during Trump’s first presidency, which include import quotas and a 25% import tariff on shipments exceeding the quota. However,
under World Trade Organization rules, these restrictions will expire after eight years, on the 30th of June this year.
The European Commission proposed new measures last October, saying that around 100,000 jobs have been lost in the European steel industry since 2008 and that without restrictions, domestic production would shrink even further. The new rules will track where the steel is originally smelted and cast to prevent circumvention of the restrictions. The origin of the steel will be regularly reviewed to ensure effective enforcement.
It has also decided to completely stop steel imports from Russia. Last year, the EU imported around 3.7 million tonnes of Russian steel. The new rules need to be voted on by the EP and the European Council for them to come into force.
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