Turkish exporters oppose "state subsidized" imports from Iran

The Turkish Steel Exporters Association (CIB) has called for measures to protect against what it believes to be state-subsidized rebar exports from Iran to Turkey.

Steel production in Iran has grown rapidly in recent years to the point that Turkey is now threatening, according to the CIB. Iranian steel production in the nine months to September rose 20% to 18.5 million tonnes, the second-highest growth in the world after Vietnam, CIB reports citing global steel data. The country plans to double its current capacity to 55 million tonnes per year by 2025.

“We are watching Iran boost cross-border exports to Turkey without considering seismic design requirements,” says CIB chairman Adnan Aslan. Steel, mainly rebar, is imported from Iran on average this year about 1,000 tons per month, but in September the volume increased to 5,000 tons and sales were carried out at prices that are competitive in the already cheap Turkish market environment. “This situation shows that the state has provided support to the Iranian metallurgical industry ... by reducing the negative impact of the US embargo on Iran,” Aslan adds.

To counter this development, Aslan proposes to Turkey to re-introduce customs duties on imports of rebar, which were removed earlier this year. In addition, in addition to the TS-708 standard requirement, an imported product such as a domestic material must have a G certificate confirming that it complies with the earthquake use regulations.