European Steel Association Expects Major Influx of Steel in EU Over US Tariffs

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) - The European Steel Association (Eurofer) is expecting a significant increase in steel imports in the EU member states due to the imposition of tariffs on metal imports from the third countries by the United States, Eurofer President Geert Van Poelvoorde said on Thursday.

"When the US is closing its borders … we will be confronted with 30 million tonnes of additional steel floating into Europe. And we have seen this, this is already happening, because the imports increased in the first quarter of 2018 by 8 percent which is not the low number. It is vital that Europe acts against this," Poelvoorde said at the European Steel Day in Brussels.

US President Donald Trump initially voiced his plans to introduce duties on aluminum and steel tariffs in March, prompting criticism from trade organizations inside and outside the United States, as well as threats of backlash from its allies and trade partners.

Last week, Washington announced it would impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on aluminum imports on the European Union, Mexico, and Canada beginning from June 1.

Brussels expressed its opposition to the US tariffs. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has called the US move pure protectionism, and said that the bloc would retaliate with its own duties against US goods, and complain to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) over the US trade policies.