The European Commission has sufficient evidence to open an anti-dumping (AD) proceeding to determine if Turkish exporters of hot-rolled flat products were sold into the EU below cost, according to a notice issued by the commission.
The inquiry follows a March 31 complaint raised by the European steel association, which represents steel manufacturers comprising over 25pc of the union’s hot-rolled coil (HRC) production, the commission indicated.
The investigation will review trade activity and potential harm caused by product imports from Turkey between Jan 1 2019 and Dec 31 2019, with an analysis on trends since Jan 2016. The union has warned that tariffs will be imposed if Turkish exporters are found to have resorted to dumping practices.
The European market for HRC, valued at around $17bn in 2019, is in high demand as it is used in all forms of manufacturing, including automaking and construction. Comprising of 27 nations, the union’s stock of HRC in 2019 was about 31mn mt with Turkish imports accounting for about 9pc or 2.8mn mt of the total stock.
Steel producers within the realm of EU have raised concerns before, about low-cost imports. The organization has had five-year anti-dumping levies on HRC from Brazil, China, Iran, Russia, and the Ukraine in place since 2017.
The steel industry throughout Europe and other countries has faced weakening demand that began last year largely due to global overcapacity and US-origin tariff conflicts, which only intensified when COVID-19 hit worldwide.
Based on the EU’s guidelines, the committee has 14 months from May 14, the proceeding notice publication date, to determine if tariffs will be imposed, which could retain a five-year duration. The commission also has eight months to ascertain whether provisional anti-dumping levies will be imposed on Turkey.