European Confederation of Iron and Steel Industries (Eurofer) has filed the first two of four anti-dumping complaints with the European Commission. These primarily cover cold rolled stainless coil and HDG imports from China and stainless cold rolled flat products from South Korea and Taiwan. Two further complaints are likely to be filed for wire rod and plates. The Commission is understood to have a maximum of 45 days to decide whether or not to launch a full investigation. The European Commission will investigate the complaint and could impose provisional measures on Chinese imports within nine months. This call for countermeasures is likely to be backed strongly by several South European countries and Germany but opposed by countries more committed to free trade like Britain and the Nordic countries. The request sets the scene for a debate likely to divide European governments as steel makers and companies reliant on cheap imports fight out of their respective corners. The commission’s decision will ultimately need approval from EU member states and could be challenged by Beijing at the World Trade Organization.
