Steel Products

EU Wields Trade Laws Against Chinese Imports
Written by Tim Triplett
August 12, 2017
Like in the United States, steelmakers in the European Union are using their trade laws to fight back against steel imports that are unfairly subsidized by the governments in China and other countries. On Aug. 9, the European Union imposed provisional import duties of up to 28.5 percent on certain Chinese corrosion-resistant steels.
The eight-month investigation was triggered by a complaint from Eurofer, the European steel trade association, whose members include ArcelorMittal, ThyssenKrupp and Tata Steel Europe.
Jefferies, the investment bank, estimates that Chinese imports of coated, corrosion-resistant steel into the EU have surged 45 percent this year and make up 51 percent of total EU imports of the product. EU regulators found that antidumping duties were needed to help producers in at least 15 EU countries raise prices and return to profitable operations.
The EU import duties, ranging from 17.2 percent to 28.5 percent, will affect Hesteel Group, Shougang Group, Shagang Group and several other companies.
The ruling on corrosion resistant steel imports follows closely the European Commission’s June 9 decision to impose countervailing duties of up to 35.9 percent on certain hot-rolled steel imports from China.
Since March 2016, the EU has put 12 antidumping measures in place, most of them on Chinese products.
Last May, the U.S. Department of Commerce imposed antidumping and countervailing duty rates in excess of 200 percent on certain Chinese corrosion-resistant products.

Tim Triplett
Read more from Tim TriplettLatest in Steel Products

OCTG producers in Canada take aim at Mexico, US, others
Evraz NA and Welded Tube of Canada have lodged an unfair trade complaint against imports of OCTG, including those from USMCA trading partners Mexico and the US.

Final Thoughts
The difference: The spat with Turkey was a big deal for steel. This time, the 50% reciprocal tariff for Brazil – if it goes into effect as threatened on Aug.1 – hits everything from coffee and to pig iron. It seems almost custom-built to inflict as much pain as possible on Brazil.

CRU: US rebar and wire rod prices rise alongside S232 increase
CRU Senior Steel Analyst Alexandra Anderson discusses current market and pricing dynamics for long steel products in the US.
CRU: Excessive global supply could hit rebar mill investments in US
Following the onset of the war in Ukraine in March 2022, concerns about import availability and expectations of rising demand from President Biden’s Infrastructure Bill pushed US rebar prices to record highs. In response, a flurry of new mills and capacity expansions were announced to meet the rise in demand from growth in the construction […]

Steel buyer spirits tempered by soft spot market conditions
Steel sheet buyers report feeling bogged down by the ongoing stresses of stagnant demand, news fatigue, tariff negotiations or implementation timelines, and persistent macroeconomic uncertainty.