US grants exemption on steel tariffs to EU and four other countries

The Trump administration has decided to grant a temporary exemption to the EU, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and South Korea from the punitive tariffs. However, this exemption is temporary, and the terms will be negotiated on a country by country basis. One of the points in the negotiation would be to ally with the
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US tariffs on steel imports will distort the steel market globally

The 25% tariff on steel imports announced by the US President on March 8th and is due to be implemented from March 23rd has already provoked reactions in the US and elsewhere. There has been opposition from both the opposition and GOP against this move due to concerns that it could end up harming US
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The US tariffs and its impact on slab trade

Donald Trump has now signed an order to impose import tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% aluminium arguing that the US has been suffering from “unfair trade” and the move would help the US metal industry. The tariffs will be effective in 15 days. However, Canada and Mexico have been exempted temporarily, whilst the
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Flat steel market remained quite in major markets in February

Due to the Chinese New Year and subdued end-users demand, the steel market has remained quiet in China, with much less price variation in February compared to the preceding month. Some buyers have been following the wait-to-see approach and drawing on inventories before the festival season. In fact, some producers had already stopped the production
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A quick overview of the global flat steel market

Current Market Conditions: Flat steel prices increase in most markets After almost five months of the price hike, flat steel prices decreased through most of January in China. As the winter goes by, some of the end user demand cools down, but stocks at distribution centres are still high. Moreover, ahead of the upcoming Chinese
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Stability in China and firm demand in most markets

Chinese prices have finally started to change direction, heading south this month, though lower supply and relatively firm demand (especially from the automotive sector) have prevented large falls. In fact, HRC export prices dropped by USD 10/t. Although small, the price decline was enough to influence other markets, such as Brazil and Russia. However, domestic
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OBOR and the railway infrastructure market

The One Belt, One Road (OBOR) is the Chinese government global initiative to connect China with rest of the world through roads, railways, ports and gas pipelines. With the enormous potential investment of $900 billion, the project was initiated in 2013 by the Chinese President Xi Jinping, and is considered the most massive overseas investment
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China’s impact continues around the world

China has proven once again that it has a global impact on the steel market. The recent surge in steel prices in China had a knock on effect on every corner of the world, including markets where demand fundamentals did not justify a price increase. In the past few years, the Chinese central government has
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One Belt, One Road — the main beneficiary

In 2013, China’s president, Xi Jinping, proposed the ’One Belt One Road (OBOR) initiative, to create the world’s largest platform for trade and economic development. The State Council authorised the plan in 2015 comprising two components, the silk road economic belt and the maritime silk road, creating a network of roads, railways and waterways. The
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The Global Light Vehicle Market Outlook

The global conventional light vehicle market is expected to go through significant changes over the next ten years. In the backdrop of economic uncertainties, tougher emission standards, electric mobility and stiffening car ownership regulations, vehicles sales growth will remain restrained. Meanwhile, growth will also be shifting from matured markets to developing and emerging markets. Commodity
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