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The European Union revealed they will match the United States' import duties on steel, effectively doubling levies on imports to 50% in a decision described as "a critical danger" to the industry in Britain.

Unprecedented Crisis for UK Steel Industry

With 80% of UK steel shipments destined for the EU, this policy shift represents the UK steel industry's biggest ever crisis, according to the industry association speaking for the industry.

European Commission Measures and Regulations

In its plan presented to the EU legislature on Tuesday, the European Commission additionally suggested reducing the current allowance for tariff-exempt steel and obliging foreign suppliers to declare where the steel was melted and poured to stop Chinese producers sneaking products in through third nations.

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

Replacement of Existing System

The proposals are designed to replace a import framework that has been in operation for the last seven years and which is due to expire in 2026 and is now seen as ineffective. Inaction could have been "catastrophic" for the industry, a European official stated.

Industry Response and Warnings

However, industry representatives, head of the trade association UK Steel, stated EU increasing duties would create "the most severe challenge the UK steel industry has encountered".

There were calls for the government to "recognise the critical necessity to implement its own measures to defend" the British steel sector – which is affected by a twenty-five percent tariff from Trump earlier this year – from the risk of vast quantities of world steel redirected from US and European markets.

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

Labor and Government Calls

Union leaders, assistant general secretary at labor union the industry union, stated the new measures posed "an existential threat" to British steel production.

Unions and industry leaders called on the UK government to begin talks immediately with the European Union on country-specific tariff exemptions, noting that the United Kingdom was now the European Union's No 1 export market.

Industry Background

Sector representatives in the European Union have repeatedly cautioned for several months that their own industry faces being "eliminated" through the new 50% tariffs on exports to the US combined with high energy costs and cheap Chinese competition.

Steel on in both the UK and EU is described as a foundational industry, providing basic materials in products ranging from building frameworks, renewable energy equipment and transport infrastructure to household appliances and kitchenware.

Adoption and Next Steps

The new measures must be agreed by member states and the European parliament, with the EU executive head calling on member states and MEPs to move quickly in support of the proposal.

Should approval be granted, the European Union will cut its current duty-free quota by 47% to 18.3m tonnes a year, a level last seen in 2013. It will apply a 50% tariff on foreign steel beyond the quota and oblige nations exporting into the bloc to state where the steel was melted and poured to avoid bypassing of the sanctions.

Exemptions and International Cooperation

These European nations will be exempt from 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 European Union is seeking a "steel partnership" with the US to ringfence their national industries from overcapacity.

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