![Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan [Yonhap]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/07/01/rcv.YNA.20260630.PYH2026063011000001300_P1.jpg)
Emergency meeting held with steel industry over EU quota reduction
Supply chain cooperation between steel and downstream industries to expand
South Korea's Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan said Tuesday the government would "swiftly announce emergency measures" to address the European Union's new tariff-rate quota regime, pledging to minimize the burden on companies, strengthen ties between the steel industry and downstream sectors, and support structural reform of the steel sector.
Kim made the remarks at an emergency meeting with steel industry representatives held Tuesday morning at the Korea Trade Insurance Corporation in Jongno-gu, Seoul. He said the government would "actively respond to minimize corporate damage" by providing guidance on the new regime, assisting with shipping and customs procedures, offering on-site consultations, and directly negotiating with the EU on key issues when necessary.
The European Commission announced Monday (local time) its operational plan for a new steel safeguard measure to replace the existing one, along with country-specific steel quota volumes. Taking effect Tuesday, the measure reduces the EU's annual duty-free import volume by about 46 percent, from 33.82 million tons to 18.35 million tons. Imports exceeding the quota will face a 50 percent tariff — double the current 25 percent rate.
After intensive negotiations, South Korea secured a dedicated country-specific quota of 2.073 million tons, which it can use without competing against other countries. That figure is down about 19.7 percent from the previous 2.581 million tons. Given that the EU's total duty-free volume fell by nearly half, analysts say South Korea managed to limit the scale of its reduction relatively well.
Kim said the government would operate a trade-difficulty response team together with the Korea Iron and Steel Association, the Korea International Trade Association and KOTRA. "We will expand supply chain cooperation between the steel industry and downstream sectors, focusing on key end-use industries such as shipbuilding, energy and defense," he said.
He added that the government would strengthen linkages with domestic demand to ease the burden on the industry from deteriorating export conditions, and would support the establishment of a stable cooperative relationship between the shipbuilding and steel industries through a voluntary mutual-benefit agreement.
Kim also outlined plans to expand the use of high-quality steel in the renewable energy sector — where large-scale new demand is expected — through regulatory improvements, and to create a new cooperation platform between the defense and steel industries to support the supply of high-value-added steel products.
The government also plans to institutionalize the submission of crude steel country-of-origin information for imported steel and to strictly enforce the bonded factory management system as preemptive measures against circumvention dumping.
"Through stronger inter-industry linkages and blocking unfairly traded imports, we will create domestic demand exceeding 510,000 tons — the amount cut from our quota — and provide a solid foundation for the steel industry," Kim said.
Kim also pledged support for fundamental structural reform of the steel sector. "Behind the EU's measures lies the structural problem of global oversupply," he said. "The path forward for our steel industry ultimately lies in low-carbon transition, higher value-added production, and productivity innovation."
He added that the government would shift the steel industry's axis toward low-carbon, high-value production by supporting the development of hydrogen-based steelmaking and specialty steel technologies. The government would also devise measures to stabilize the supply and improve the quality of steel scrap — the key raw material for electric arc furnaces — and accelerate the manufacturing AI transformation initiative, known as M.AX, to drive productivity gains and improve working conditions, he said.
"Steel is a strategic asset that safeguards national security and underpins the competitiveness of our manufacturing sector," Kim said. "The harder the external environment, the more closely the government and industry must work together as one team. We will spare no policy effort to ensure our steel industry stands at the center of South Korea's manufacturing resurgence."
oskymoon@heraldcorp.com
