NEWS ANALYSIS: Davies gets ball rolling for more protection against cheap steel
Latest tariffs will add heft to the existing levy on foreign imports
Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies has signed off on a proposal for steel safeguards that aim to further restrict a glut of mostly cheaper Chinese steel imports into SA. This will soon be on its way to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), he says. The tariffs will add heft to a 10% tariff imposed on foreign imports — which primary steel producers say does not adequately protect the sector. The industry has submitted applications for safeguards on hot-rolled coil and cold-rolled coil, which are the basis of many industrial products. Davies has given no figure for the proposed duty. He only says that earlier South African tariff measures have been relatively modest compared with other countries.However, Gerhard Papenfus, CEO of the National Employers’ Association of SA, says it is 12%, according to the government’s WTO applications. He also says the decision by the government is in conflict with the findings of the International Trade Administration Commission, a statutory body tha...
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