Story perspectives

EU Slashes Steel Duty-Free Quotas, Targets 80% Capacity

7/2/2026

Summary

European Commission Cuts

European Commission announced quotas cutting duty-free steel imports by 47% to 18.3 million tonnes, adding a 50% duty on out-of-quota steel, and reserving half for free-trade partners while opening the rest to traders.
The Commission targets 80% utilisation and Eurofer Director-General Axel Eggert expects utilisation to rise to 73-75% and recover 15 million tonnes.
Eurofer said utilisation is near 67% amid weak demand and that many partners have provisionally accepted their allocations.

Summary

EU Cuts Turkey

Turkey’s hot-rolled coil quota was cut by 60% to 642,249 tonnes, down from 1.59 million tonnes.
Import volumes of semi-finished and finished steel rose 14% YoY to 40 million tonnes in 2025, prompting the safeguard.
Ukraine warned it now faces both the EU safeguard and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
Residual quotas will be allocated quarterly on a first-come, first-served basis, only to countries excluded from Annex II Section 3.

Summary

Commission Enacts Steel

The European Commission adopted a new steel regulation that obliges importers to provide traceability data for the melt & pour stage.
The Commission noted that most EU steel imports come from free-trade-agreement partners, shaping the 18.3 million-tonne tariff-free quota.
World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations produced provisional quota-allocation agreements for several countries, easing the safeguard’s diplomatic rollout.
The Commission called the measure a vital step to protect a strategically crucial European industry.

History

Historical Context

In 2002 the United States invoked safeguard rules to levy 8–30% tariffs on steel imports, a move the World Trade Organization declared illegal in a 2003 ruling. The European Union, drawing on the same GATT Article XIX framework, has now introduced a quota-based safeguard that adds a 50% duty on selected steel, echoing the earlier protectionist episode.

1 of 4

European Commission Cuts

European Commission announced quotas cutting duty-free steel imports by 47% to 18.3 million tonnes, adding a 50% duty on out-of-quota steel, and reserving half for free-trade partners while opening the rest to traders.
The Commission targets 80% utilisation and Eurofer Director-General Axel Eggert expects utilisation to rise to 73-75% and recover 15 million tonnes.
Eurofer said utilisation is near 67% amid weak demand and that many partners have provisionally accepted their allocations.

1 / 4