The agreed EU draft, which details the upcoming strengthening of the existing steel trade protection system, will retain quotas for the first year and will apply to all trading partners, according to a draft document that McCloskey reviewed on April 24.
Recently, the European Parliament and the Council, during trilateral negotiations, agreed on a final compromise text, which will be submitted in accordance with the Commission's initial regulatory proposal aimed at doubling the base rate of steel tariffs in the EU to 50% and reducing total import quotas by 47%. The first reading of the agreed regulations is tentatively scheduled for May 18-21, and sources generally expect that this measure will be adopted without any problems.
Specific details on the distribution of tightened quotas for specific countries remain unavailable and are actively being prepared in the relevant implementation act. McCloskey understands that the European Commission and industry representatives are actively negotiating Article XXVIII this week in Geneva, finalizing quota allocation for affected trading partners.
The presented text provides some additional insight into how quotas will be allocated for specific countries, confirming the methodology for adjusting specific import market shares in 2022-2024, taking into account the overall import balance of 13% in 2013.
In addition, the agreed regulations describe in detail a number of factors that the Commission must "take into account" when assigning appropriations for a particular country, including new considerations regarding:
- The "interests of the Union" are defined in relation to the entire steel value chain, including end users;
- "measures of third countries affecting the Union steel market";
- Do countries violate "ILO conventions or multilateral environmental agreements";
- "information collected in accordance with Article 3" – detailed requirements for melting and pouring
The draft also clarifies how quotas will be allocated to Free Trade Agreement (FTTA) partners, confirming that the relevant counterparties will continue to be subject to the new steel trading system through bilateral safeguard agreements. The Commission is authorized to adopt these implementing acts with immediate legal force "on duly justified grounds of urgency", if necessary to ensure implementation by July 1.
If a country receives a quota under a bilateral free trade agreement, it will not receive duplicate quotas in accordance with the law on the introduction of quotas for a particular country. If
