EU steel exports to US plummet 30 percent after Trump tariffs

BRUSSELS

US President Donald Trump tours the Coosa Steel Corporation factory in Rome, Georgia, on Feb. 19, 2026. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

U.S. President Donald Trump's hefty duties on steel have caused European exports to the United States to plummet by a third since July 2025, an industry group said Friday, calling for a "balanced" U.S.-EU tariff deal.

Trump imposed levies of 50 percent on steel and aluminium imports to the United States last year as part of his barrage of tariffs on partners around the world.

Under a deal struck last year, the United States agreed to impose a 15 percent tariff on most EU goods, but it did not include steel and aluminium.

Citing official EU data, European steel industry group Eurofer said exports to the United States plunged 30 percent in the second half of last year compared to the same period in 2024, a fall it blamed on Trump's tariffs.

Trump later expanded his levies in August to include several hundred products which contain steel or aluminium, which could have further negative effects for European makers of machinery and other goods with high metal content.

"The figures underscore the need for any EU-U.S. trade agreement to be fair, balanced and enforceable," Eurofer said in a statement.

Washington has refused to reduce the metals tariffs despite EU appeals, but told the EU to rethink its approach to digital regulation if it wants lower duties -- a bargain that is unacceptable for Brussels.

The EU in October moved to shield its struggling industry by doubling tariffs on foreign steel, as part of rescue measures that must be agreed by June 2026 before the current safeguards end.

Eurofer's call comes as the European Parliament's trade committee is expected to vote Tuesday on the implementation of the EU-U.S. deal.

The committee had suspended its work after Trump's threats to annex Greenland but parliament appears ready to give its approval, albeit with safeguards and a review clause.

EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic urged EU lawmakers to approve the deal "as quickly as possible", ahead of talks Friday with EU trade ministers in Greek Cyprus.