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EU officials revealed plans to adopt Donald Trump's import duties on steel, effectively doubling levies on foreign steel to 50% in a move described as "a critical danger" to the sector in the UK.

Major Challenge for UK Steel Industry

With eighty percent of UK steel shipments going to the EU, this policy shift creates the UK steel industry's largest crisis, as stated by the lobby group representing the industry.

New EU Measures and Rules

Through its proposal presented to the EU legislature this week, the EU executive additionally suggested slashing the existing quota for tariff-exempt steel and requiring foreign suppliers to disclose where the steel was melted and poured to prevent Chinese producers sneaking products in through third nations.

EU steel sector stood at the brink of failure – these measures safeguard it so that it can invest, decarbonise, and become competitive again.

Overhaul of Current Framework

These measures are designed to replace a quota system that has been in operation for the last seven years and which is due to expire in 2026 and is now seen as outdated. Inaction could have been "fatal" for the industry, a European official stated.

Sector Reaction and Warnings

However, industry representatives, head of the trade association British Steel, stated Brussels doubling its tariffs would pose "the biggest crisis the UK steel industry has ever faced".

He called on the UK authorities to "acknowledge the urgent need to put in place domestic protections to defend" the UK steel industry – which is still reeling from a 25% duty imposed by the US earlier this year – from the threat of vast quantities of global steel redirected from American and EU markets.

This flood of imports "could be fatal for numerous steel companies.

Union and Government Pressure

Alasdair McDiarmid, representative at steelworkers' union Community, stated the proposed changes represented "a survival risk" to UK steel.

Unions and industry leaders urged Keir Starmer to start negotiations urgently with the EU on country-specific duty-free quotas, pointing out that the United Kingdom was now the European Union's primary trading partner.

Industry Background

Industry leaders in the European Union have also been warning for months that the European steel sector faces being "wiped out" through the new 50% tariffs on exports to the US combined with high energy costs and cheap Chinese competition.

Steel on both sides of the Channel is considered a foundational industry, supplying elemental components in everything from skyscraper structures, renewable energy equipment and railways to dishwashers and cutlery.

Adoption and Future Actions

These proposals must be agreed by member states and the European parliament, with the EU executive head urging member states and MEPs to act fast in support of the proposal.

If the plan is ratified, the EU will reduce its existing tariff-free allowance by forty-seven percent to 18.3m tonnes a annually, a volume last seen in 2013. It will apply a fifty percent duty on foreign steel beyond the quota and oblige countries exporting into the bloc to state the production origin to prevent circumvention of the measures.

Exemptions and Global Partnerships

These European nations will be exempt from import limits or duties due to their strong economic ties in the European Economic Area, the EU has confirmed.

Alongside the proposal, the European Union is seeking a "metals alliance" with the US to protect their national industries from excess production.

EU needs to act now, and firmly, prior to all lights go out in large parts of the EU steel industry and its value chains.