EU’s Brexit safeguard quota adjustment penalises Turkey: TCUD

Turkish steel mills face a further contraction in steel exports following the EU’s new safeguard quota adjustment to account for Brexit from 1 January 2021. Turkish steel producers believe the EU has deducted too large a volume from Turkey’s quota.

Turkish Steel Producers Association (TCUD) general secretary Dr Veysel Yayan tells Kallanish: “By putting Brexit at the forefront, the EU took the opportunity to further cut quotas. New quotas are not determined on the basis of our export volumes to the UK. The cut amount has nothing to do with our export volumes to the UK, specifically for HRC and rebar. Our exports to the UK are much lower.”

“We are concerned that the EU’s restrictive approach will continue. Since they are limiting the quotas so much, it means the EU is disregarding free and fair trade. It means they have entered a closed economy period,” Yayan adds.

The EU has reduced Turkey’s first-quarter-2021 rebar quota of 75,000 tonnes to 58,926t, and the second-quarter quota of 75,000t to 59,480t.

Turkish steel exports to the bloc will therefore be further restricted in 2021. According to Eurofer, Turkey took first place in the EU’s finished steel imports in 2018, providing 6.2 million tonnes. Of Turkey’s exports that year, 33% went to the EU, but this decreased to 25% following the implementation of quotas.

Yayan also recalls that, while the EU has protected itself from imports, there has been a significant increase in Turkey’s steel imports from the EU.

Last week the European Commission said it has recalculated the volume of Tariff Rate Quotas (TRQs) as part of its steel safeguard measures effective 1 January 2021 to consider the UK a third country following Brexit.