At the announcement by worldsteel of the short-range global steel demand outlook at its 50th annual general meeting in Dubai, discussions also centered on the issue of antidumping duties and trade cases and the situation regarding them going forward. Will they continue?
Worldsteel director general Edwin Basson stated that fortunately the World Trade Association (WTO) has a clear set of rules, which creates certainty going through a period of trade tensions. As a result, he is not unduly concerned by such tensions.
New worldsteel chairman John Ferriola said that if fair trade exists then the global economy improves, which is good for all steel companies and so the steel industry wants fair trade to continue.
Speaking in particular in relation to India, T. V. Narendran, worldsteel economics committee chairman and managing director of Tata Steel, said that up to 18 months ago there had been no talk of trade measures in India, whereas the situation at present is quite different. He affirmed that in the medium-to-long term free trade is best for everyone. Voestalpine’s Wolfgang Eder, the outgoing worldsteel chairman, remarked that trade measures can be useful implements in the short term but not in the long term.