EU Institutions Agree on New Steel Sector Protection Measures

European Union institutions have reached agreement on new measures to protect the European steel industry from unfair global trade practices. The new regulation establishes duty-free import quotas of 18.3 million tons annually for 30 categories of steel products entering the EU, with imports beyond these quotas subject to a 50 percent tariff. The measure is designed to address the negative trade effects of global overcapacity in steel production, which has put pressure on European steelmakers through artificially cheap imports that undercut domestic production.