🔗 Share this article

The European Union declared plans to adopt Donald Trump's import duties on steel, increasing to double levies on imports to fifty percent in a action described as "an existential threat" to the sector in Britain.

Major Challenge for UK Steel Exports

Given that 80% of UK steel shipments going to the EU, this policy shift poses the UK steel industry's most severe challenge, according to the lobby group representing the sector.

European Commission Measures and Rules

In its plan presented to the European parliament on Tuesday, the EU executive also proposed cutting the current allowance for tariff-exempt steel and obliging foreign suppliers to disclose the origin of steel production to prevent China sneaking products in through third nations.

The European steel industry faced potential collapse – we are protecting it so that it can invest, reduce emissions, and regain competitiveness.

Replacement of Existing System

These measures are intended to supersede a quota system that has been in operation for the last seven years and which is due to expire in 2026 and is now seen as not fit for purpose. To do nothing could have been "disastrous" for the industry, one EU official stated.

Sector Response and Warnings

Nevertheless, industry representatives, from the industry body UK Steel, stated Brussels increasing duties would create "the biggest crisis the UK steel industry has ever faced".

There were calls for the government to "recognise the urgent need to implement domestic protections to protect" the British steel sector – which is still reeling from a twenty-five percent tariff imposed by Trump recently – from the risk of vast quantities of world steel redirected from US and European markets.

This surge in foreign steel "could be fatal for many of our remaining steel companies.

Labor and Government Calls

Union leaders, assistant general secretary at labor union the industry union, stated the new measures represented "a survival risk" to UK steel.

Labor and business representatives urged the UK government to begin talks urgently with the European Union on nation-specific duty-free quotas, pointing out that the UK was now the EU's primary export market.

Industry Background

Industry leaders in the European Union have repeatedly cautioned for months that their own industry confronts being "wiped out" through the new 50% tariffs on American market shipments combined with rising energy prices and low-cost Chinese imports.

The steel industry on both sides of the Channel is described as a foundational industry, providing elemental components in everything from skyscraper structures, renewable energy equipment and railways to dishwashers and cutlery.

Adoption and Future Actions

The new measures must be agreed by EU nations and the European parliament, with the EU executive head urging member states and MEPs to act fast in support of the proposal.

Should approval be granted, the EU will reduce its current duty-free quota by 47% to 18.3 million tons a annually, a volume previously recorded in 2013. It will impose a 50% duty on imports beyond the quota and oblige nations shipping to the bloc to state where the steel was melted and poured to prevent circumvention of the measures.

Exceptions and Global Partnerships

These European nations will be exempt from tariff quotas or duties because of their strong economic ties in the European Economic Area, the EU has confirmed.

In addition to these measures, the European Union is seeking a "steel partnership" with the United States to protect their national industries from excess production.

The European Union must take immediate action, and firmly, before all lights go out in significant portions of the European steel sector and its value chains.