Posted on 29 May 2019
Moroccan authorities have confirmed that the country is opening a safeguard investigation this week on HRC imports, following a complaint lodged by the sole domestic producer Maghreb Steel, Kallanish learns from an official statement.
The investigation is expected be finalised by the end of February 2020.
According to the complaint from Maghreb Steel, imports of HRC in the country have increased 31% year-on-year in the 2017-2018 period. Over 2014-2018 the increase had surpassed 50%. Last year the share of imports in the HRC market jumped by 57% y-o-y.
Morocco has anti-dumping measures against the import of HRC from Turkey and Europe and a safeguard system covering the import of CRC, HDG, rebar and wire rod. The extension of safeguard measures to the HRC market would further support the activities of Maghreb Steel in the country.
“The massive increase in imports appears to be the result of prevailing circumstances, such as the increase in global [... steel] production capacity and the upward trend in protection in this sector at the international level,” the official statement from the Moroccan authorities reads. The statement goes on to say that Maghreb Steel’s financial indicators have been impacted by these problems and could decline further if counter measures are not applied.
