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EU officials revealed they will adopt Donald Trump's steel tariffs, increasing to double taxes on imports to fifty percent in a action condemned as "a critical danger" to the industry in the UK.

Unprecedented Crisis for UK Steel Exports

With eighty percent of UK steel shipments destined for the European Union, this policy shift creates the UK steel industry's biggest ever challenge, as stated by the industry association representing the industry.

New EU Measures and Rules

Through its proposal presented to the EU legislature on Tuesday, the EU executive additionally suggested reducing the existing quota for tariff-exempt steel and obliging foreign suppliers to disclose the origin of steel production to prevent China sneaking products in through third nations.

EU steel sector was on the verge of collapse – these measures safeguard it so that investments can be made, reduce emissions, and become competitive again.

Overhaul of Existing System

These measures are intended to replace a import framework that has been functioning for the last seven years and which is set to expire in 2026 and is now seen as outdated. To do nothing could have been "fatal" for the sector, one EU official said.

Industry Reaction and Concerns

However, industry representatives, head of the trade association UK Steel, said Brussels increasing duties would pose "the most severe challenge the UK steel industry has ever faced".

There were calls for the UK authorities to "recognise the urgent need to put in place domestic protections to protect" the British steel sector – which is still reeling from a twenty-five percent duty imposed by Trump earlier this year – from the risk of millions of tonnes of world steel redirected from US and European markets.

This surge in foreign steel "could be fatal for many of our remaining steel companies.

Union and Government Pressure

Union leaders, assistant general secretary at steelworkers' union the industry union, said the proposed changes represented "a survival risk" to UK steel.

Unions and industry leaders called on Keir Starmer to start negotiations immediately with the European Union on nation-specific duty-free quotas, noting that the UK was now the European Union's primary export market.

Industry Background

Industry leaders in the EU have also been warning for several months that their own industry faces being "eliminated" through the increased duties on exports to the US combined with high energy costs and low-cost Chinese imports.

Steel on both sides of the Channel is considered a essential sector, providing elemental components in products ranging from skyscraper structures, wind turbines and transport infrastructure to dishwashers and cutlery.

Implementation and Next Steps

These proposals must be agreed by member states and the European parliament, with the European Commission president calling on national governments and MEPs to move quickly in backing the initiative.

Should approval be granted, the European Union will reduce its existing tariff-free allowance by forty-seven percent to 18.3m tonnes a year, a volume previously recorded in 2013. It will impose a fifty percent tariff on imports exceeding the limit and require countries shipping to the EU to declare the production origin to prevent circumvention of the measures.

Exceptions and Global Partnerships

These European nations will not be subject to tariff quotas or duties due to their close trading relationship in the EEA, the European Union has confirmed.

Alongside the proposal, the European Union is seeking a "metals alliance" with the United States to protect their national industries from overcapacity.

The European Union needs to act now, and decisively, prior to all lights go out in significant portions of the European steel sector and its value chains.