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Indonesia launches WTO dispute against the EU over stainless steel import duties
The Indonesian government is taking the European Union to the World Trade Organization over the regional organization’s imposition of import duties on Indonesian stainless steel products.
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Krakatau Steel employees watch the production of the first hot rolled coil (HRC) steel in the company's second hot steel mill in Banten on May 17, 2021. (Courtesy of Krakatau Steel)
T
he Indonesian government launched a new dispute with the European Union before the World Trade Organization over the imposition of antidumping and countervailing import duties on stainless steel.
According to Trade Ministry expert staff for international agreements Bara Krishna Hasibuan, this marks the third time Indonesia and the EU have been involved in a trade dispute at the WTO in recent years, following preceding disputes over EU biodiesel import duties and Indonesia’s cessation of nickel exports.
"We have filed for the third case. The EU has imposed additional import duties [for stainless steel]," Bara said on Sunday, as quoted by CNN Indonesia.
The Indonesian government filed the complaint after the EU imposed a countervailing duty for Indonesian and Indian stainless-steel cold-rolled flat (SSCRF) products.
This latest policy has the EU imposing a 25 percent countervailing duty for Indonesian products and 7.5 percent for Indian products, less than one-third of Indonesia's.
Additionally, the EU has also imposed antidumping duties for Indonesian stainless-steel products ranging from 10.2 to 31.5 percent since 2021.
Bara said the EU accused the Indonesian government of receiving subsidies on steel products from the Chinese government after China signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between state-owned steelmaker PT Krakatau Steel and Chinese state-owned Baowu Group Zhongnan in October to reactivate the former's iron and steel-making (ISM) upstream facilities.
