EU plans to adopt final safeguards for steel imports

Brussels announced that the EU plans to maintain tariff quotas for imported steel from July 2018 to July 2021.

The EU plans to impose a 25% tariff on steel imports that exceed the average import value of 105% between 2015 and 2017. The European Commission has informed the WTO about this safeguard. This measure will target all non-EU Member States and set separate national quotas for major exporting countries such as Turkey.

The safeguards are designed to stabilize European market prices and act as a response to U.S. steel tariffs to prevent export transfers. EU steelmakers say tariff quotas effectively prevent steel from flowing into Europe and demand permanent safeguards from the European Commission. Steel users, especially automakers, want to lift these restrictions. The European Commission today announced its support for steel producers, but gave an additional 5% tariff-free import quota. According to the EU survey, the EU steel industry has not yet fully recovered from the global steel crisis and is still facing downward price pressures. The European Commission said member states would vote on these measures in mid-January.