EU's Proposal to Match Trump's Steel Tariffs Poses 'Survival Risk' to British Steel Sector

EU officials revealed they will adopt the United States' import duties on steel, increasing to double levies on imports to fifty percent in a decision described as "a survival risk" to the sector in the UK.

Major Challenge for British Steel Exports

With 80% of UK steel shipments destined for the European Union, this policy shift creates the British steel sector's biggest ever crisis, as stated by the lobby group speaking for the sector.

New EU Proposals and Rules

In its plan submitted to the EU legislature on Tuesday, the European Commission additionally suggested reducing the existing quota for duty-free imports and obliging international producers to disclose where the steel was melted and poured to stop Chinese producers sneaking products in through other countries.

The European steel industry stood at the brink of failure – these measures safeguard it so that investments can be made, decarbonise, and regain competitiveness.

Overhaul of Existing System

The proposals are intended to replace a import framework that has been functioning for the past seven years and which is set to expire in 2026 and is now seen as ineffective. To do nothing could have been "fatal" for the sector, one EU official said.

Sector Reaction and Warnings

However, Gareth Stace, head of the trade association UK Steel, said Brussels increasing duties would pose "the most severe challenge the UK steel industry has encountered".

He called on the government to "recognise the critical necessity to implement its own measures to defend" the British steel sector – which is affected by a 25% tariff imposed by Trump earlier this year – from the threat of vast quantities of global steel diverted away from American and EU markets.

This flood of imports "could be fatal for many of our remaining steel companies.

Union and Government Calls

Union leaders, assistant general secretary at labor union Community, said the new measures represented "a survival risk" to British steel production.

Unions and industry leaders called on Keir Starmer to begin talks immediately with the European Union on nation-specific tariff exemptions, noting that the UK was now the EU's No 1 export market.

Industry Background

Sector representatives in the EU have repeatedly cautioned for months that their own industry faces being "wiped out" through the new 50% tariffs on exports to the US along with high energy costs and low-cost Chinese imports.

Steel on both sides of the Channel is described as a essential sector, providing elemental components in products ranging from building frameworks, wind turbines and transport infrastructure to household appliances and kitchenware.

Adoption and Next Steps

These proposals must be agreed by EU nations and the European parliament, with the EU executive head calling on member states and European parliament members to move quickly in backing the proposal.

Should approval be granted, the European Union will cut its existing tariff-free allowance by forty-seven percent to 18.3 million tons a year, a volume last seen in 2013. It will apply a fifty percent tariff on foreign steel exceeding the limit and require countries exporting into the EU to declare where the steel was melted and poured to avoid bypassing of the measures.

Exemptions and International Cooperation

Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein will not be subject to tariff quotas or duties due to their strong economic ties in the European Economic Area, the European Union has said.

In addition to these measures, the EU is pursuing a "steel partnership" with the US to protect their national industries from overcapacity.

The European Union needs to act now, and firmly, prior to all lights go out in significant portions of the European steel sector and its value chains.