The European Steel Association, Eurofer, has been quick to react to the US declaration on blanket tariffs for imported steel, as has its UK counterpart (see separate article). President Trump has chosen the most disruptive option, Eurofer says.

"From one day to the next, EU steel exports to the US - which were at 5 million tonnes in 2017 - will be cut drastically by an estimated -50% 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 20-25mt overall. This would represent a volume representing more than half the total EU imports of 2017 (40mt)," says the association’s director general Axel Eggert.

"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", Eggert continues in a statement sent to Kallanish. 

Eurofer is calling for a continued focus by governments on addressing the root causes of global excess capacity. These include the recommendations for strong subsidy and government support disciplines pursued in the framework of the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity meeting on 7-9 March in Paris, the association says.  

"We welcome the announcement of the Commission that appropriate and swift measures will be taken to safeguard the interests and jobs in our industry. The EU must not allow that the moderate recovery in our industry over the last year is now being destroyed by the EU's most important political ally," Eggert concludes.