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EU officials revealed plans to adopt Donald Trump's import duties on steel, effectively doubling levies on foreign steel to fifty percent in a decision described as "an existential threat" to the sector in the UK.

Major Challenge for UK Steel Exports

Given that 80% of UK steel shipments going to the European Union, this policy shift creates the British steel sector's biggest ever challenge, as stated by the industry association representing the sector.

European Commission Measures and Rules

Through its proposal submitted to the European parliament on Tuesday, the EU executive also proposed cutting the current allowance for duty-free imports and requiring foreign suppliers to declare the origin of steel production to stop China sneaking products in through third nations.

EU steel sector stood at the brink of failure – these measures safeguard it so that investments can be made, decarbonise, and become competitive again.

Replacement of Existing System

These measures are designed to supersede a import framework that has been in operation for the last seven years and which is due to expire in 2026 and is now considered ineffective. Inaction could have been "fatal" for the sector, a European official stated.

Industry Response and Concerns

However, Gareth Stace, head of the trade association UK Steel, stated EU increasing duties would create "the biggest crisis the British steel sector has encountered".

There were calls for the government to "recognise the critical necessity to put in place its own measures to defend" the UK steel industry – which is affected by a 25% tariff imposed by Trump earlier this year – from the threat of millions of tonnes of global steel diverted away from American and EU markets.

This surge in foreign steel "could be terminal for numerous steel companies.

Union and Political Pressure

Alasdair McDiarmid, assistant general secretary at labor union the industry union, said the new measures represented "a survival risk" to British steel production.

Unions and industry leaders called on the UK government to start negotiations immediately with the EU on country-specific duty-free quotas, noting that the United Kingdom was now the European Union's No 1 export market.

Broader Context

Industry leaders in the European Union have also been warning for months that their own industry confronts being "eliminated" through the increased duties on American market shipments along with high energy costs and low-cost Chinese imports.

The steel industry on both sides of the Channel is described as a foundational industry, providing basic materials in everything from skyscraper structures, wind turbines and railways to dishwashers and kitchenware.

Adoption and Future Actions

These proposals must be agreed by member states and the European parliament, with the EU executive head calling on member states and MEPs to act fast in backing the initiative.

If the plan is ratified, the European Union will reduce its existing tariff-free allowance by 47% to 18.3 million tons a annually, a level last seen in 2013. It will apply a fifty percent duty on imports beyond the quota and require countries exporting into the EU to state the production origin to avoid bypassing of the measures.

Exemptions and Global Partnerships

These European nations will not be subject to tariff quotas or duties due to their close trading relationship in the European Economic Area, the EU has confirmed.

In addition to these measures, the European Union is pursuing a "steel partnership" with the United States to ringfence their national industries from overcapacity.

EU must take immediate action, and decisively, before all lights go out in significant portions of the European steel sector and its supply networks.