Eurofer, industriaALL call for Steel Summit, trade action
Eurofer and industriaALL have called on the European Commission to hold a “European Steel Summit” in January to discuss short-term emergency trade measures and a new “comprehensive EU trade initiative”.
Current EU trade defence instruments remain essential but are insufficient to tackle the spill-over of global steel overcapacity, the associations say in a joint letter to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and new Executive Vice-President for Prosperity and Industrial Strategy Stéphane Séjourné.
Around 100 million tonnes of Chinese steel are flooding major markets at dumping prices, they continue. “However, the issue is bigger than only China”, they add, with South Asia, the Middle East, India, and Japan rerouting to the EU, depressing global steel prices, and endangering the survival of the steel sector and investments in the green transition.
“Import tariffication – taking into account WTO rules – is needed to tackle a double crisis, combining market-distorting export surges with extreme low prices,” the letter seen by Kallanish states.
The proposed summit should involve the steel social partners, Member States, and high-level officials from the EU institutions, with the aim of addressing the present crisis. It would be “instrumental” in preparing the announced “Steel and Metals Action Plan”, as well as other initiatives aiming to lower energy prices, secure the effectiveness of CBAM, access to raw materials, a Just Transition, and to boost investments, such as the Clean Industrial Deal, the associations note.
“The Summit would allow the leaders of industriAll Europe and EUROFER, trade union leaders and CEOs of EU steel companies the opportunity to provide you with a detailed update on the dramatic state of play in our sector and to exchange on recommendations contained in the social partners’ ‘Steel Action Plan’,” they conclude.
Adam Smith Poland
