News
January 6, 2026
New steel safeguard: A blow to Europe’s industrial competitiveness
Joint Statement by European Steel Using Industries
Our associations are concerned about the negative effects on Europe’s downstream manufacturing industries that can be expected from the European Commission’s proposal for continued protection of the EU steel market.
We understand and support the need to level the playing field for the European steel sector and address global overcapacities. However, we believe that the parameters as proposed by the Commission go too far in ring-fencing the European market. A better and fairer balance must be struck between the needs of European producers on the one hand, and users of steel on the other.
We foresee the following impacts resulting from the measure:
- The proposal almost halves the overall import quota volume and doubles the out-of-quota tariff to 50%. As more imports will fall outside the quotas, our industries would have to shoulder between 5 and 9 billion EUR a year in extra tariff costs, assuming that imports stay at the same level as in 2024
- The Commission foresees a 3.25% increase in average EU steel prices as a result of the measure This is already significant, but it is a minimal assumption, as in some steel categories much higher price increases of up to 30% can be expected. This means that not only importers, but also companies that rely on EU steel will see their European and international competitiveness deteriorate.
- The introduction of the “melt and pour” rule will greatly increase the administrative burden for steel users, penalising SMEs in particular. Obtaining origin information for low-value consignments will be practically impossible. Such a burdensome rule needs to be implemented in a much more careful and practical way and phased in within realistic timelines.
- Finally, the proposal will make it much harder for our industries to source specialised, high-quality steel inputs that are needed for complex industrial applications. Such products are often manufactured by only a handful of suppliers worldwide and not in sufficient quantities in Europe.