Eleven EU member states have called upon the European Commission to impose new, stricter trade measures in lieu of safeguards on steel from January 1 next year.
Earlier this week, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Spain issued a joint “non-paper” urging the EC to consider early expiry of the existing safeguard measures and the imposition of new trade measures as early as the start of next year.
The goal is to help the struggling EU steel sector return to sustainable capacity utilization rates near 85%, aligning import market shares with pre-crisis levels – of 15% for flat and stainless steel and 5% for long steel. Imports current account for around 28-30% of the EU flat steel market, observers estimate.
The existing steel safeguard measures – in place since 2019 – were intended to protect EU steelmakers from a potential surge in imports. The current measures are set to expire on June 30, 2026.
“If appropriate, an early expiry of the safeguard measure could be envisaged, coordinated with the entry into force of the new mechanism, in order to ensure the best possible protection for the EU steel industry as early as possible,” the document reads.
The new trade framework should include a tariff-rate quota system that is similar to current iteration but with significantly reduced duty-free quotas – at 40-50% below current levels – and apply equally to all third countries, the member states argued
It must also prevent quota manipulation via progressive liberalization, rollover of unused quotas or inconsistent national customs procedures. Flexibility is key – quota volumes should adjust based on demand shifts to maintain import market share consistency.
The countries also suggested to increase out-of-quota duty of imported steel to 40-50% from 25% currently “to effectively limit the imports to the targeted market shares.”
The suggested new system is based on tariff-rate quotas with an additional customs duty on all imports outside of that quota. But it could ultimately be product-based rather than country-based, as is the case for the existing measures, sources suggested to Fastmarkets.
The proposal also advocates extending coverage to steel products that are not currently targeted by safeguard measures, including:
• Tubes, pipes and hollow profiles of cast iron (CN 73 03 0010, 73 03 0090)
• Grain-oriented electrical steel sheets (CN 72 25 1100, 72 26 1100)
• Granules of pig iron, spiegeleisen, iron or steel (CN 72 05 1000)
• Stainless steel drawn wires (CN 72 23 0011, 72 23 0019, 72 23 0091, 72 23 0099, 77 22 4050)
• Grinding balls and similar articles for mills (CN 73 25 91, 73 26 11)
• Bearing tubes (CN 73 04 5110, 73 04 5930)
• Non alloy and other alloy forged bars (CN 7214 1000, 7228 1050, 7228 4010, 7228 4090)
• Other alloy wires (CN 72 29 2000, 72 29 9020, 72 29 9050, 72 29 9090)
To ensure WTO compatibility and mitigate downstream impacts, the countries urged the UC to conduct thorough legal and economic assessments. The mechanism should balance the interests of EU producers, importers and consumers, preserving competitive access while securing the industry’s future.
European steel association Eurofer welcomed the initiative in the face of unprecedented crisis the EU steel sector is faced with.
“We expect the European Commission to give due consideration to constructive Member State initiatives that are clearly aligned with the ambition of the Steel and Metals Action Plan (SMAP) in ‘promoting and protecting European industrial capacities’ and ‘defending quality industrial jobs’. In a rapidly changing and increasingly uncertain geoeconomic context, time is running out,” Eurofer director general Axel Eggert said.
The EC’s SMAP recognises multiple challenges to the US steel sector, among them high energy costs, exposure to an unlevel playing field in international competition, decarbonisation investment needs and regulatory burdens.
“The ongoing uncertainty surrounding EU steel exports to the US and the lack of clarity around a potential EU-US ‘Metals Club’ to tackle global overcapacity clearly demonstrate that European steelmakers cannot afford further EU inaction. Europe can only be stronger with European steel,” Eggert also said.
On July 18, the EC started a consultation on new trade measures to replace the existing steel safeguards.
In the third quarter of 2025, the EC is set to propose long-term measures, based on tariff-rate quotas, to replace the steel safeguards from July 1 next year, providing an equivalent level of protection against negative trade-related effects caused by global overcapacity.
