Overseas
December 16, 2025
Written by Ethan Bernard
The European Commission is aiming to have Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum eased, with a special eye on derivative products, as it negotiates with the Trump administration, according to a Dec. 15 report in Politico.
EC Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič told the publication it was singling out derivatives of steel and aluminum.
US steel exports eased 3% from August to September, marking the third consecutive monthly decline following June’s 17-month high, according to recently released US Department of Commerce figures. Exports have been historically low since early 2025 and remain weak compared to volumes seen in prior years. In September, 615,000 short tons (st) of steel were shipped outside of the country, 2% below the average monthly export rate of the past twelve months. September trade was 3% higher than the same month of 2025, 19% lower than September 2024, 21% lower than September 2023, and 15% lower than September 2022. For context, exports fell to a five-year low of 469,000 st in December and reached a near-five-year high of 914,000 st in May 2023.
The US Department of Commerce recently made adjustments to the anti-dumping duties (AD) on certain steel pipe and tube imports after annual administrative reviews, according to notices in the Federal Register. Commerce reviewed the AD order on imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG) from Mexico and lowered the dumping rate for one company. Tubos de Acero de Mexico received a 1.87% dumping rate for the year ended Oct. 31, 2024. The rate is down notably from 26.1% in the previous year. The all-others cash deposit rate remains set at 44.93%.
After an annual administrative review, the US Department of Commerce is adjusting the countervailing duties (CVDs) on imports of cut-to-length carbon-quality steel plate from South Korea. For the 2024 calendar year, Commerce set CVDs of 1.89% for Dongkuk Steel Mill and 1.39% for Hyundai Steel, according to a Federal Register announcement. The rates have changed slightly from the prior year review: Dongkuk's is down from 2.21% and Hyundai's is up from 1.31%. The cash deposit rate for all other companies remains 3.26%.
The US Department of Commerce has determined sizable dumping rates against Austria, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates in the trade case investigating imports of oil country tubular goods (OCTG). Recall the dumping investigations and a companion subsidy investigation were launched in April at the request of the US OCTG Manufacturers Association (USOMA), U.S. Steel, and the United Steelworkers.
During the first three quarters of 2026, finished steel imports from South Korea increased 50.8% compared with the same period in 2025. Imports from Vietnam increased 23.4%, imports from Turkey increased 49.5%, and imports from India increased 29.5%. Those are not marginal increases. They are substantial import surges, especially in a US market where apparent domestic consumption has bounced around but has not grown since 2017. More importantly, these import surges are arriving at lower average unit values (AUVs).