Global Exporters on Edge as US Prepares New Wave of Steel Tariffs

Businesses around the world, particularly in Europe, are anxiously awaiting a decision from the US Department of Commerce that could escalate global trade tensions. A new list of approximately 700 additional products, ranging from everyday bicycles to industrial baking trays, is expected to be hit with “steel derivative” tariffs.
This move follows a recent precedent set in August, when 407 other items were added to the tariff list. The success rate for companies requesting those additions was near 100%, fueling widespread fears that this new, larger list of 700 items will also be approved. This has created a sense of a “rolling and growing” list of taxed goods that is impossible to predict.
The push for these new levies comes from within the United States. A diverse group of small, medium, and large American companies have filed formal requests. They argue they face unfair competition from foreign goods that contain steel but do not face the same import duties that US firms pay for raw steel.
For European manufacturers in the UK and EU, this policy threatens to undermine existing trade agreements. These deals, which set baseline tariffs of 10% (UK) and 25% (EU) and higher rates for raw steel, are now seen as being bypassed. Exporters say this new layer of tariffs “makes a mockery” of the agreements, as they could be double-taxed.
A final decision on the new product list, which was finalized after an October 21 deadline for submissions, is expected in December or January. Experts warn this is creating significant uncertainty in the transatlantic trade relationship, regardless of the deals already in place.