BØRSEN: Steel Industry Demands Extended Tariff Wall Against Cheap Asian Steel

By Peter B. Rasmussen

New rules aimed at curbing cheap Chinese steel imports into Europe are not good enough, says steel wholesaler Damstahl. Semi-finished products should also be subject to tariffs — otherwise the European steel industry will wither, the company’s CEO warns. Read the original article in Danish. 

Europe being flooded with cheap Chinese semi-finished steel products is increasingly seen as a realistic scenario, as the EU works on new tariff regulations for trade with China and other non-EU countries.

Semi-finished products have so far been exempt from tariffs.

“There will inevitably be more and more European companies beginning to import semi-finished products instead of raw materials (such as steel bars and steel sheets, ed.) from Asia into Europe,” says CEO Michael Lund from the steel wholesaler Damstahl in Skanderborg.

The European legislation in this area focuses on raw materials, primarily bars and sheets, but has excluded products that involve some processing. These are semi-finished goods that are exempt from tariffs.

Peter Bay Kirkegaard, Senior Chief Consultant, DI:

Europe’s steel industry is being negatively affected by the global trade war, in which the United States leads with a high tariff wall that, among other things, forces Chinese companies to seek alternative markets, such as in Europe.

Therefore, the EU is working to further restrict imports, particularly from China.

The current tariff is 25 percent and is expected to be increased to 50 percent. At the same time, the EU’s duty-free import quota for steel will be halved.

In addition comes the climate tariff, CBAM, which imposes a CO₂ levy on European imports.

Professor Christian Bjørnskov from Aarhus University calls the global trade war “insane” and fundamentally believes that Europe should not erect a tariff wall. More on that later.

The various effects of European tariffs are expected to contribute to higher steel prices in the EU due to reduced supply, according to Euranimi, an organization representing Europe’s steel wholesalers.

Damstahl is a member of Euranimi, and Michael Lund serves as the organization’s spokesperson in Denmark.

The tariff wall around the EU is fundamentally not comprehensive enough, the organization argues.

The organization’s members supply around 500,000 European industrial companies with steel products and proudly refer to themselves as “the backbone of European industry.” They deliver steel to, for example, the automotive and wind industries, as well as to the pharmaceutical and food sectors. Millions of Europeans are employed in these companies.

FACTS – EU’s Tariff Regulation on Steel Imports
• Since 2019. Imports of certain steel products can only take place duty-free up to a specific quota, after which additional tariffs apply. Currently 25 percent.
• A new framework for steel imports will take effect after the current safeguard expires in June 2026.
• The quota for duty-free steel imports is set at approximately 18.3 million tons annually – a reduction of about 47 percent compared to previous levels.
• When that quota is exceeded, a tariff rate of up to 50 percent will apply.
• A “Melt & Pour” requirement will be introduced: documentation of where the steel was melted and poured, to prevent circumvention through intermediary countries.
Source: European Commission

Damstahl and similar companies are working to broaden the European tariff wall so that it also includes semi-finished products — a view that may not be popular everywhere, says Michael Lund, though he supports it.

“The Americans today have a model where semi-finished products are also subject to tariffs based on the steel content in the product. I’m not a fan of trade barriers, but given the current circumstances, it’s actually quite a good model,” says Michael Lund.

He does not hesitate to criticize the EU for political muddle rooted in the lobbying of steel producers. This powerful industry has had strong influence and left its mark so that only imports of raw steel are covered by the EU’s new steel plan — which, in Euranimi’s view, is not sufficient.

The result will be exploding prices and structural shortages for the European manufacturing industry, according to Euranimi.

If no action is taken, the consequences for Europe will be severe: a wave of cheap finished goods, machinery, consumer products, and components produced outside the EU — made from cheaper, duty-free steel — will flood the European market.

And the organization of wholesalers paints an almost dystopian picture of a deindustrialized European open-air museum: European producers losing competitiveness, facing higher costs within the EU, and declining market shares outside the Union.

“Not exactly DI’s favorite dish”

At the Confederation of Danish Industry (DI), senior chief adviser Peter Bay Kirkegaard describes the trade war as “not exactly DI’s favorite dish.”

However, he believes that well-considered reactions are necessary now that “the tiger is out of the cage,” as he calls the global trade war led by the United States.

He agrees largely with Damstahl’s position that a steel tariff should not only cover raw materials but, in principle, also finished products.

“When you only impose tariffs on a raw material, you simply move the problem further up the value chain. It becomes a never-ending screw,” he says, criticizing the steel industry’s proposal to add tariffs on semi-finished products. “It will only increase the incentive to send finished goods to Europe if they are not subject to tariffs.”

He points to a possible way forward for companies affected by cheap Asian semi-finished products:

“If the industry identifies problems with market distortion, anti-dumping investigations can be initiated, and anti-dumping duties can be introduced on those goods. That can be handled that way,” says Peter Bay Kirkegaard.

Liberalist Against Tariffs

Christian Bjørnskov is a professor of economics at Aarhus University and a staunch supporter of liberalism and market economy. He is a board member of the liberal think tank Cepos and does not hesitate to describe the global trade war as “a hole in the head.”

“Subsidized Chinese steel is basically steel imports with an extra gift to European consumers paid for by China. From an economic perspective, that should be preferable,” he says, adding:

“Politicians who don’t understand trade see Europe’s countermeasures as a necessary retaliation, but there is absolutely no need for a European tariff wall.”

However, since the trade war has become a reality, Bjørnskov agrees with EU policymakers that tariffs should only apply to raw materials, and that extending tariffs along the entire value chain would simply make products even more expensive.

He believes that a future solution to the global tariff wall problem must come with help from the U.S. Supreme Court, which has indicated that former President Donald Trump lacked the legal authority to impose such tariffs.

According to Bjørnskov, this could mark the beginning of dismantling global tariff barriers.

Michael Bremerskov Jensen, head of global market development at Dansk Erhverv (the Danish Chamber of Commerce), provided the following written statement:

“We recognize that there has been overcapacity in global steel production for years, caused primarily by Chinese producers. This calls for countermeasures from the EU so that we can continue to maintain a viable European steel industry. It’s a difficult balancing act, and at Dansk Erhverv we look forward to contributing input to upcoming discussions to ensure our members are represented on both sides of the equation.”

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Børsen
Translated from Danish
11 November 2025