EU Commission ends ferroalloy-tariff threat on India

The panel said while some imports from India were dumped, they weren’t necessarily the cause of ‘material injury’ suffered by the EU silicomanganese industry

The European Union ended a threat to impose tariffs on a ferroalloy from India, the latest in a series of trade measures favouring steel producers in Europe.

The European Commission closed a probe into whether Indian exporters of silicomanganese — used by EU steelmakers such as ArcelorMittal and Salzgitter AG — sold it in the 28-nation bloc below cost, a practice known as dumping. The commission said that while some imports from India were dumped, they weren’t necessarily the cause of “material injury” suffered by the European silicomanganese industry.

“Hardly any undercutting was found,” the commission, the EU’s executive arm in Brussels, said on Thursday in the Official Journal. “A causal link between the dumped imports and the injurious situation of the union industry could not be established.”

Indian exporters including Modern India Con-Cast Ltd. and Indsil Hydro Power and Manganese Ltd. have a combined 23% to 30% of the EU silicomanganese market, said the commission. The other major foreign suppliers of silicomanganese to the EU are Norway, Ukraine and South Africa, according to the commission.

Chinese steel

The decision against imposing anti-dumping duties on silicomanganese from India follows EU efforts to curb competition for European steel manufacturers by introducing or threatening to introduce more anti-dumping levies on steel from China. Overcapacity at Chinese mills, which account for about half of global steel production, has left European competitors clamoring for extra EU trade protection.

The probe covering silicomanganese from India was opened in December 2014 and stemmed from a dumping complaint by an association called Euroalliages on behalf of three EU silicomanganese manufacturers. In such investigations, the commission has nine months to decide whether to introduce provisional anti-dumping duties and 15 months to decide on any “definitive” five-year levies. In this case, no provisional measures were introduced.

Mr. Vinay Dalmia, representing Indian exporter of Ferroalloys thanks EU Commission for the patience hearing and arriving at the right decision in the interest of the Industries. Mr. Dalmia further mentioned that it was a great experience to deal with the Investigation team during their visit to India.

UK exposed to steel deluge as US clamps down on Chinese imports

The UK’s embattled steel sector faces fresh pressure after the US government stepped in to protect its domestic industry against the growing glut of cheap Chinese supply, industry groups have warned.

UK steel producers have been dealt a double blow by the US plans to impose crippling import duties of up to 266pc against Chinese companies, and around 30pc against UK steel makers. This could result in more Chinese exports being diverted to Europe while making it more expensive for UK firms to sell their wares in the US.

The UK steel industry’s largest trade union Community said: “We are drowning in this flood of Chinese imports and the US action will only serve to divert more Chinese steel towards Europe.

“Unless the Secretary of State [for Business, Innovation and Skills, Sajid Javid] is prepared to join others in Europe and stand up for our industry soon, the debate will be over as we will have no industry left to save.”

Union boss Roy Rickhuss said the “enormous” US tariffs reflect the true cost of unfairly traded steel imports in contrast with the “measly” 16pc tariff imposed by Brussels in a bid to level the playing field for European producers.

“This enormous difference demonstrates that the global market is not free or fair,” Mr Rickhuss said.

Industry group UK Steel branded European efforts to date "inadequate" to tackle the growing pressure on steel mills. 

UK Steel director Gareth Stace said: “The US is showing the way in which to deal with under-priced, unfairly traded and state supported imports from China. It is acting decisively, swiftly and at a level that stops China dumping steel with impunity. By contrast, the meek and mild response in the EU is looking increasingly inadequate.

It begs the question why the UK Government continues to block EU-level attempts to impose higher tariffs. Warm words and limited incremental action are not enough given the crisis conditions faced by steel makers across Europe today,” he added.

The latest rules are designed to defend the US domestic market against cheap steel imports from firms in Brazil, India, South Korea, Russia, Japan and the UK, which will all now face steeper charges for sending cold-rolled steel to America. But the steepest margins levies will be levelled against state-subsidised Chinese steel producers.

By contrast the EU has been slow to react to the threat of rising global supply despite growing calls for protection as steel mills are forced to slash jobs and face an increasingly uncertain future.

Tata Steel’s former European boss Karl Koehler has blasted European Commission’s efforts to fight the unfair competition from heavily-subsidised Russian and Chinese steel as “slow and half-hearted”.

Under the new US plans, Tata Steel will face a 31.39pc duty on exports to the country while fellow UK steel producer Caparo Precision Strip has been given a dumping margin of 12.62pc. All other UK producers will face a levy of 28.05pc.

Peter Brennan, European editor at steel industry data provider Platts, said Europe is increasingly vulnerable to global market pressures by lagging behind the US moves to protect producers.

“The US is one of the more aggressive when it comes to protectionist measures. As a relatively isolated market they can keep out imports in a way that European countries can’t.

"As a result Europe is certainly more susceptible to imports, if only because it takes twice as long for 28 nations to agree a stance as it takes the US to make a single decision."

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U.S. Imposes 266% Duty on Imports of Steel From China

Producers in China and six other countries sold cold-rolled steel at unfairly low prices in the U.S. market and will be taxed as much as 266 percent on the price, the Commerce Department said in a preliminary decision on Tuesday.

The government imposed tariffs of 266 percent on imports from China, with goods from Brazil, India, South Korea, Russia, Japan and the U.K. also subject to duties. Shipments from Brazil will face 39 percent penalties, and South Korean producers will face taxes of as much as 6.9 percent.

This is the second time since December that the U.S. government has penalized foreign steel producers, including Chinese mills, for selling the metal in the U.S. at unfairly low prices, or dumping. Domestic producers including Nucor Corp. and U.S. Steel Corp. began filing trade cases accusing some global competitors of unfair subsidies and other illegal trade practices in June.

U.S. producers have filed cases accusing foreign steelmakers of dumping and subsidizing four varieties of steel products. In December, the government found that China, India, Italy and South Korea had dumped corrosion-resistant steel in the U.S. and levied taxes of 256 percent on imports from China. Other duties ranged from 3 percent to 9 percent.

The duties may not satisfy domestic producers, said Caitlin Webber, a Washington-based analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.

“The dumping rates for South Korea, the second-largest source of these products, were far below what the U.S. industry alleged,” Webber said in an interview. “Apart from the prohibitive Chinese rates, this is the second disappointing dumping finding for the U.S. industry and doesn’t bode well for the industry’s third and final case this year.”

Regulators had previously determined that hot-rolled, cold-rolled and corrosion-resistant steel from China and other trading partners has been unlawfully subsidized.

Imports of cold-rolled steel fell by 9.4 percent in 2015 to 2.43 million tons, according to data compiled by Bloomberg from the U.S. Census Bureau.

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China plans to cut 1.8 million coal and steel jobs

China's workers are starting to feel the pain of the global commodities bust.

The Chinese government said Monday it was planning to shed 1.8 million coal and steel jobs in an effort to reduce excess capacity.

Some 1.3 million jobs will be lost in the coal sector, and 500,000 in the steel industry.

"Although this is a very difficult task, in every respect, it is something that we must actively work to accomplish," said Yin Weimin, China's top human resources and social security official. Yin did not say when the jobs would go.

The cuts represent about 20% and 11% of China's coal and steel jobs, respectively, according to IHS Insight.

China's slowdown has triggered a rout in global commodities. For years, China pumped up its economy by building infrastructure and factories, fueling huge demand for coal and steel.

But the world's second-largest economy is now posting its weakest growth in 25 years, prompting those industries to cut back on investment and jobs around the globe. Now, the layoffs are also hitting China.

Chinese companies have been accused of selling unwanted steel on world markets for less than it costs to produce and export, suffocating local rivals. A month ago, Europe slapped anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese steel imports in an attempt to save thousands of jobs.

In addition to tackling overcapacity, China's announcement could represent a small step towards reforming its large state-owned companies, which are notorious for inefficiency and wasteful spending.

The government in Beijing has described these companies as "zombies" and made cleaning them up one of its priorities -- but so far little obvious action has been taken.

It has to tread carefully, however, given a growing number of incidents of labor unrest in recent years.

"More aggressive layoffs or more generous compensation would require additional funding," said IHS Insight China economist Brian Jackson.

In a move that could ease the pain of the steel and coal cuts, the Chinese government has earmarked 100 billion yuan ($15.3 billion) over the next two years for unemployment relief, offering training and job placement services.

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White House announces executive actions to try to prevent steel dumping

WASHINGTON -- The Obama administration announced new executive actions Thursday aimed at thwarting illegal foreign steel dumping into the market, which workers on the Iron Range and Minnesota politicians blame for the slowdown in the mining industry there.

The executive actions include adding more inspectors of steel imports at ports of entry and bringing on more staffers to enforce trade laws. The White House also said they will add personnel to the Commerce Department to help ensure tariffs are enforced against those who dump steel in the U.S.

The executive actions come after a visit in December from President Obama's chief of staff Denis McDonough to the Iron Range to hear from some of the 2,000 people who have been laid off in the past year.

Minnesota's politicians, including Gov. Mark Dayton, Sens. Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, and Rep. Rick Nolan, have urged the executive branch to do more. Obama told Dayton earlier this week in a meeting at the White House that he's been more aggressive than other administrations in cracking down on steel dumping.

"These steps are urgently needed to prevent further damage to the lives and livelihoods of great people on the Iron Range," Dayton said in a statement.

Klobuchar said the next step is for Congress to pass bills to strengthen America’s trade enforcement capabilities and “ensure laid-off workers affected by steel dumping receive the support they deserve.”


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China says Chinese steelmakers not engaged in dumping surplus goods

The European Union has launched new probes into imports of Chinese steel, warning that it wouldn't allow 'unfair competition' to threaten Europe's industry already crumbling under a flood of cheap imports. CCTV's reporter has talked to government officials and industry experts in Beijing on the issue. 

The iron and steel industry has become the main area where China-Europe trade friction occurs. 

China's Ministry of Commerce says Chinese steel makers are not engaged in any form of dumping of surplus goods into the European Union.

"Low preliminary tariffs are not evidence of dumping by China. Overcapacity is a worldwide industry problem," 

"The Chinese government and enterprises made efforts to restructure the steel industry and reduce excess capacity and these made headway," said Shen Danyang, spokesman Ministry of Commerce.

The EU market accounts for less than eight percent of China's iron and steel export market. Experts say China hopes to deal with the overcapacity together with the EU, and protectionism will only exacerbate the situation."

For Xu Xiangchun who's worked for the China Iron and Steel Association for over ten years, blaming China for the slumping iron and steel market in Europe is unfair.

Xu now works for one of China's biggest steel e-Commerce sector companies... and as one of his tasks is to deal with up-to-date steel prices everyday, he thinks the EU is not a main market of China's iron and steel export industry.

According to the Association, Asia accounts for over 70 percent of China's main export market in this industry while the EU is less than eight percent.

"The selling prices of China's steel products in the EU market is about twenty percent higher than China's domestic prices. So it's unfair to say that China's is selling below the cost of production," said Xu Xiangchun, Chief Analyst of Mysteel.com.

In recent years, the EU has frequently imposed anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures against iron and steel imports from China and other exporters.

Chinese steel exports have been the subject of 37 investigations worldwide in 2015, and that equalled the probes over the previous two years.

"These anti-dumping investigation measures have produced few results in bringing down the import volume. This has shown the problem lies not in imports but in the iron and steel industry in Europe itself," said Xu.

China has seen a wave of shut downs last year in small- and medium-sized iron and steel smelters. However, State-owned enterprises really have the say in the total output.

The central government has called on them to replace outdated capacity with advanced technologies. But it will take time for these measures to have an impact.

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U.S. says ferroalloy imports from Australia sold at 12.03 pct dumping margin

The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday an Australian company once owned by the world's biggest miner BHP Billiton Ltd sold silicomanganese in the United States at a dumping margin of 12.03 percent, and a final decision on imposing duties on the imports would be made on March 28.

West Virginia-based Felman Production LLC has said large and increasing volumes of silicomanganese, an alloy additive used to make steel, from Tasmanian Electro Metallurgical Co (TEMCO) have "significantly undercut" U.S. prices.

BHP spun off the plant into a separate company, called South32, to shareholders in May.

The Commerce Department in September said it planned to impose preliminary duties of 11.93 percent on the goods.

In a statement on Tuesday, it said it had determined the dumping margin to be 12.03 percent. The U.S. International Trade Commission will make its final decision on March 28, it said.

The value of silicomanganese imports from Australia in 2014 was estimated at $76.9 million, it added.

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