New strict quotas have increased the risk of higher tariffs on steel imports, turning overseas purchases into a "risky high-stakes game" for buyers in the EU and the United Kingdom, according to a new podcast by MEPs.
The latest release of the MEPs' podcast "Talking about Steel" follows the European Commission's announcement of its new country steel requirements just one day before the July introduction of the rules. This reduced duty-free imports by 47%, subjecting the increased steel imports to new 50% tariffs exceeding quotas. In the UK, importers were given just five days to respond to a 51 percent reduction in customs duties in that country and the introduction of an identical 50 percent tariff over quotas.
John Carruthers-Green, a steel market analyst from the European Parliament, said: We will continue to observe these imports. We will see it at a lower level, but we will see an increased risk. You don't always know exactly what the tariff will be, especially in the early stages of introducing a new quota.
"Those duties that exceed the established quotas, which you are talking about, mean that you must apply a large margin of error."
Carruthers-Green joins fellow steel market analysts Adam Crooks and Benedikta Mikolajczak in a new podcast, "Talking about Steel." Three experts on the steel market are discussing new trade protection measures and their consequences with Tom Sharp, editor-in-chief of the MEPs.
In the new issue, which is already available on YouTube https://youtu.be/0AR3mifIDb8 both Spotify and Apple Podcasts cover the following topics:
- Winners and losers: tariffs have already been exceeded, which creates problems with tariffs for buyers
- Flexibility or complexity? New "excess" quotas in the regulation of EU steel production for countries that have signed a free trade agreement
- New EU rules on the origin of steel based on the principle of "melting and casting": their impact on foreign purchases and future tariffs
- Reduction in steel supplies caused by reduced imports and its impact on prices due to reduced inventories
- Restrictions on steel production in the UK caused by buyer concerns about supplies
Commenting on the reaction of Southern European buyers to the new EU steel regulations, Mikolajczak told the Speaking of Steel podcast that many of them had been cleared before they were introduced on July 1. She said that most of them preferred to pay the 25% tariff set by the old protective measures over the quota, rather than being at risk due to the 50% rate of the new regime.
Although the European Parliament's report on European steel showed a widespread decline in steel prices, as purchasing activity decreased
