Turkey has announced that it will impose anti-dumping duties on certain steel imports from China, Russia, Japan's Space Industry Aims to Advance Amid Increasing Global Competition”>India
, and Japan. The highest tax rate will be applied to imports from China. The duties range from 6.1 percent to 43.31 percent of cost, insurance, and freight prices.These measures are being taken to prevent unfair competition from foreign countries following complaints by domestic producers. An investigation into hot rolled steel imports revealed that the dumping of steel products from China, Russia, India, and Japan poses a threat to Turkey’s domestic production.
The duties on steel imports from China will range from 15 percent to 43 percent, while tariffs on imports from Russia, India, and Japan will range from 6 percent to 9 percent.
Veysel Yayan, secretary-general of the Turkish Steel Producers Association stated that these tariffs would impact around 4 million tons of imported products worth more than $2 billion.
In response to this decision by Turkey, shares in Turkish steelmakers Erdemir and Isdemir rose by 2.48 percent and 2.2 percent respectively.
It is worth noting that trade tensions between China and the European Union (EU) have been escalating over tariffs on electric vehicles as well as other goods such as brandy and cheese. Previously, China had filed a complaint against Turkey regarding higher tariffs imposed on electric vehicle imports.
Although Turkey is not an EU member despite being part of NATO; however the EU remains its most important trade partner.
This move by Turkey reflects a subtle shift in its international relations according to Sun Kuo-hsiang who is a professor at Nanhua University in Taiwan specializing in international affairs and business. He believes that Turkey is paying more attention towards protecting its own economy while seeking support in the global economy amidst domestic economic pressure.
Ding Shuh-fan who is a professor emeritus at National Chengchi University in Taiwan mentioned that Turkey’s economic situation is not favorable due to large amounts of imported steel products impacting domestic employment rates.