The German steel industry is concerned about Trump's trade protectionism

Germany's steel industry is still concerned, despite stable steel prices and the need to boost capacity utilization in the auto sector, as imports of cheap steel in China have slowed, the Business Daily reported on Jan. 19. "The protectionist propensity to continue to spread in the global steel market is a major risk," said Hans Jüergen Kerkhoff, chairman of the German Iron and Steel Federation. This risk is mainly related to Trump, his comments on tariffs on foreign cars caused German industry to a wide range of concerns about the closure of the US market, German steel companies will also be subject to such protectionist trade policies. German iron and steel enterprises to the US direct steel exports to 700,000 tons per year, accounting for German exports to the EU a quarter of steel, including automotive and machinery and equipment, including indirect exports of 2.5 million tons, the United States is the German steel-related Product second largest export market. Section said protectionism is the answer to the global steel industry's challenges. He also argues that EU steelmakers are protected by European protection measures against China's steel imports and that protectionism is not contradictory, and that anti-dumping or countervailing measures are necessary to correct, rather than protectionist, the aim of which is to restore fair competition conditions. Section said that if the United States to take measures to protect its iron and steel enterprises, may lead to trade diversion effect. The United States is the world's largest importer of steel, with an annual import volume of 31 million tonnes, of which one-third comes from the North American Free Trade Area and Asia. If the steel can no longer be exported to the United States, it may shift to Europe, decline.