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The European Union declared plans to adopt Donald Trump's import duties on steel, effectively doubling levies on imports to 50% in a decision condemned as "a survival risk" to the industry in Britain.

Major Challenge for British Steel Industry

Given that 80% of British exports destined for the European Union, this policy shift poses the British steel sector's largest challenge, as stated by the industry association representing the sector.

New EU Measures and Regulations

In its plan submitted to the EU legislature on Tuesday, the EU executive also proposed slashing the current allowance for tariff-exempt steel and requiring foreign suppliers to declare the origin of steel production to prevent China diverting exports through third nations.

EU steel sector faced potential collapse – we are protecting it so that investments can be made, reduce emissions, and become competitive again.

Replacement of Existing System

The proposals are designed to replace a import framework that has been functioning for the last seven years and which is set to expire in 2026 and is now considered outdated. Inaction could have been "catastrophic" for the sector, one EU official stated.

Sector Response and Warnings

However, industry representatives, from the trade association British Steel, stated Brussels increasing duties would create "the most severe challenge the British steel sector has ever faced".

He called on the UK authorities to "acknowledge the urgent need to put in place its own measures to protect" the British steel sector – which is affected by a 25% duty from Trump recently – from the threat of millions of tonnes of global steel redirected from US and European markets.

This surge in foreign steel "might prove terminal for many of our remaining steel companies.

Labor and Government Calls

Union leaders, representative at steelworkers' union Community, said the proposed changes posed "an existential threat" to UK steel.

Unions and industry leaders urged Keir Starmer to begin talks immediately with the EU on nation-specific tariff exemptions, pointing out 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 several months that the European steel sector confronts being "eliminated" through the increased duties on American market shipments combined with rising energy prices and cheap Chinese competition.

Steel on in both the UK and EU is considered a essential sector, providing elemental components in products ranging from skyscraper structures, wind turbines and transport infrastructure to household appliances and kitchenware.

Adoption and Future Actions

The new measures require approval by member states and the EU legislature, with the European Commission president calling on national governments and European parliament members to act fast in backing the proposal.

If the plan is ratified, the EU will reduce its current duty-free quota by forty-seven percent to 18.3 million tons a year, a level previously recorded in 2013. It will apply a fifty percent tariff on foreign steel exceeding the limit and oblige nations exporting into the bloc to state the production origin to avoid bypassing of the measures.

Exemptions and International Cooperation

These European nations will not be subject to import limits or tariffs due to their close trading relationship in the European Economic Area, the European Union has said.

In addition to these measures, the EU is seeking a "steel partnership" with the US to ringfence their respective economies from overcapacity.

The European Union needs to act now, and firmly, before all lights go out in large parts of the European steel sector and its supply networks.