EU stainless steel imports dive 21% in H1 ahead of new safeguard regime

EU imports of stainless steel flat products, long products and tubes reached 645,500 tonnes during this year's January-June half, representing a huge 21% decrease from the same period last year, according to data from the Statistical Office of the European Union. Flat products registered a steeper on-year decline of 35%.

The contraction stemmed from the EU's new steel safeguard regulation, which took effect on 1 July. Under the new framework, annual tariff-free quotas are set at 18.3 million tonnes across 30 steel categories – a 47% cut from the previous period – with a 50% duty applied to shipments