Paris (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Aperam, a French steelmaker company, called on Brussels to intervene to restrain imports if new 25% tariffs on all aluminium and steel imports into the U.S. prompt firms to ship more to the EU instead.
As reported by Reuters, the company’s statements underscore the worries among European steelmakers regarding a potential fresh flood of inexpensive steel into the EU as occurred in 2018 under Trump’s first term.
The European Union imposed in 2018 safeguard efforts to restrict the amount of tariff-free steel entering the EU to stop a surge of imports after U.S. President Donald Trump’s then steel tariffs effectively shut the U.S. market.
How does Aperam view the risks of increased imports?
Since 2018, we have already been managing the impact of the 25% duty, working closely with our customers to find mutually acceptable solutions,
a spokesperson for Aperam said, pointing to the existing U.S. tariffs.
“We furthermore expect that if exports from third countries to the U.S. are deflected to the European market .. the European Commission promptly takes appropriate measures to safeguard the interests of its domestic steel producers, as it did in 2018.”
CEO of Aperam, Tim di Maulo, told analysts that decreasing imports was not the only standard steelmakers had requested, and any consideration of the safeguard that maintained inefficiencies would be positive.
How is the EU planning to protect its steel industry?
Moreover, the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President Stephane Sejourne stated in December it would examine ways to develop those measures as part of a comprehensive strategy to safeguard the sector as it decarbonises. Under World Trade Organization regulations, safeguards can only be put for a max of eight years, indicating they will run out during Trump’s second term in mid-2026.
The European said it would react with “firm and proportionate countermeasures” to the latest tariffs. The EU’s so-called “Steel and Metals Action Plan” seeks to streamline or delay specific Green Deal regulations while promising to uphold EU climate goals and regulate imports through quotas. It will be offered in Spring 2025.
