Fears Trump's tariffs will cause mass job losses in European steel industry
Mass layoffs of European steel workers are looming as a result of Donald Trump’s protectionist trade policy, industry leaders have warned.
The European Steel Association (Eurofer) issued the bleak message as its member gathered in Brussels for their annual conference amid a global crisis for the sector.
Its president, Geert Van Poelvoorde, put the potential number of job losses in the tens of thousands and warned the industry could be “slaughtered.”
European steel manufacturers did around £5bn worth of businesses with the US last year – and the UK’s 35 steel sites accounted for £300m of that.
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Their exports to the US are set to be slashed by at least a third as a result of the 25 per cent tariff imposed on their goods by the US President last week.
They will also be dealt a double blow as steel produced outside the EU that was set for the US is now diverted into the world’s second largest steel market – Europe.
Imports of steel to the EU have already surged by 8.4 per cent in the first quarter of 2018.
And Eurofer expects there is worse to come as effects of the US tariffs take hold, warning imports into the EU could rise by as much as 30 per cent this year.
“This will be detrimental for the European steel industry, for jobs and the plants,” Van Poelvoorde said at a press conference.
“It is clear that if we do not stop this tsunami we will just be slaughtered.”
Addressing members later, he warned: “If the US measures remain in place without modification from their present state, we could see job losses in the tens of thousands in the steel industry in Europe, as well as losses in the supply chains that service the sector.”
However, Van Poelvoorde pointed out that the EU would not suffer alone.
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While the US steel industry may benefit from the tariffs, one study predicted there would 146,000 job losses in the rest of the economy as higher steel prices pushed up costs.
There will also be a price to pay from the tariffs the EU has placed on a diverse range 182 US products popular in Europe, which range from jeans to bourbon whiskey and motorcycles.
EU leaders have also pledged to safeguard European producers by stopping excess steel imports.
Backing the EU measures, Van Poelvoorde said: “The only thing we can do now is to defend ourselves and put the pressure back on the US to get them around the negotiating table.”