US and UK eliminate taxes on steel products from Brazil

The Ministry of Economy confirmed today (25) that the United Kingdom decided not to apply preventive tax measures on the import of steel plates and cold rolled steel products.

According to the ministry, the British decision was announced on Friday (23), just four days after the US International Trade Commission (ITC) decided to scrap defense trade (anti-dumping) tariffs that had been in place for more than 5 years. Shipped on cold rolled steel products from Brazil.

With the removal of warranties, Brazilian steel becomes more commercially competitive. The United Kingdom and the United States are two of the main markets for Brazilian steel products. Of the approximately US$7.3 billion that Brazil exported to the world in 2019, more than US$3.4 billion went to the United Kingdom and the United States.

According to the Ministry of Economy, the British authorities were convinced by the argument that the volume of Brazilian exports fell within the parameters of the tax exemption allowed by agreements signed within the scope of the World Trade Organization (WTO).

About a year ago, all steel plates and cold rolled steel products sold to the UK by Brazilian steelmakers above the maximum volume periodically reviewed by UK authorities were subject to an additional fee of 25%.

The United States will not impose additional duties of up to 46% (35% anti-dumping duties and 11% countervailing action) on cold-rolled steel products purchased from Brazil. According to the Ministry of Economy, the US decision applies exclusively to Brazilian products, while maintaining the protective measures applied to other countries.

review

On the same day it revised the terms for importing steel products from Brazil, the United States International Trade Commission reassessed the protection measures applied to products from China, India, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom.

In a note, the US commission explained that the measure is part of the review process stipulated by international trade rules that must occur every 5 years. Under these rules, during that period, the United States must rescind any preventive or compensatory measures if it is unable to determine that doing so would likely result in the continuation or repetition of the conditions that prompted the same actions.