Downstream metals incentive designed to offset upstream steel protection

Trade and Industry Minister Dr Rob Davies confirmed last week that he had signed off on a hot-rolled coil (HRC) safeguard duty, but refused to be drawn on the duty level proposed until the Word Trade Organisation (WTO) had been notified. Speaking in Johannesburg at the release of the ninth Industrial Policy Action Plan (Ipap 2017), Davies reiterated the importance of sustaining a primary steel industry, which had come under intense pressure as a result of the current global oversupply of steel.