Europe: Egypt, Vietnam, Japan, Taiwan exhaust EU HRC export quota for Q4CY'24

Egypt, Vietnam, Japan, and Taiwan, all of which fall under the "other countries" category, have exceeded the quota imposed by the European Union (EU) for hot-rolled coil (HRC) exports in Q4CY'24 (October to December 2024). This category has a total export quota of 945,665 tonnes (t) to the EU, and each country's allocations are limited to 15% of the overall volume.

Japan reported the largest allocation among these four countries, submitting 251,333 t for customs clearance, surpassing its quota by 77%. Vietnam followed closely, exceeding its quota by 71% with a submission of 242,292 t. Taiwan also exceeded its quota by 10%, submitting 155,950 t. Egypt, while only slightly surpassing its quota by 2%, submitted 144,518 t.

Meanwhile, Turkey, with the largest individual quota of 475,174 t, has only utilised 78,991 t, leaving a significant portion of its quota available in Q4CY'24. This underutilisation comes after the country supplied 456,910 t in Q3CY'24, leaving only 4% of its quota remaining by the end of the period.

India, another major exporter to the EU, has also seen a significant portion of its allocated quota of 301,704 t consumed. As of now, 80% of India's quota has been utilised, leaving only 59,502 t remaining.

Egypt, Vietnam, Japan, and Taiwan's full utilisation of their quotas comes amid an ongoing EU investigation into allegations of dumping of hot-rolled steel products by these countries. This investigation, initiated in August 2024, has raised concerns among European steelmakers about the impact of these imports on their market. The EU's investigation could potentially lead to retroactive duties on imports of HRC, a development that has already been anticipated by the European market.