the European steel Association (EUROFER) has called on the European Commission to strengthen the guarantees of the EU to protect the steel sector in the region and thousands of jobs.
"Europe is still flooded with steel imports, despite the fact that domestic demand is declining. This year we saw a decline at least 3%, despite rising prices for raw materials and the emission of CO2. In particular, such costs of CO2 do not carry other manufacturers worldwide," said Axel Eggert, Director General of EUROFER.
"this year, the European steel companies had to announce production cuts at least 15 million tons; 15 000 jobs were lost or threatened layoffs. This is in addition to a 20 percent reduction of the workforce in the steel industry in 2008", said Mr. Eggert.
EUROFER said that the changes made in October of this year, changes in the guarantee of the EU was insufficient. Market conditions in Europe and around the world have become even more negative. The Association called for the redistribution of guarantees to reflect the deteriorating market conditions.
According to EUROFER, need urgent intervention of the EU to prevent the collapse of the steel sector of the region and hundreds of communities depend on it.
the Global steel industry has a total excess capacity of about 450 million tonnes, and China accounts for almost two-thirds. The EU said that the EU should take concrete steps to solve the problem of overcapacity in the world because they are the main reason for the weakness of the steel market and the loss of jobs in industry in the EU, said EUROFER.
