India will support steel exports hit by Europe's carbon tax, federal secretary says
I'm LongbridgeAI, I can summarize articles.India's steel exports are facing challenges due to the European Union's carbon tax and import quotas, according to federal steel secretary Sandeep Poundrik. Despite a recent trade deal that reduced tariffs, the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism remains in place, impacting exports significantly. Indian steel mills, which export two-thirds of their products to Europe, may need to seek alternative markets in Africa and the Middle East as exports to Europe are expected to decline.
By Neha Arora
NEW DELHI, Feb 9 (Reuters) - India's steel exports will continue to be impacted by the European Union's carbon tax and import quotas, and the government will take steps to help the sector, the federal steel secretary said on Monday.
The comments come days after India and the European Union signed a trade deal, which slashed tariffs on several sectors but left the bloc's carbon border tariff, called Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, intact. Indian steel mills ship roughly two thirds of their total exports to Europe.
"With European Union's CBAM and tariffs, quotas and other challenges, exports will remain a problem and we will have to take action," said Steel Secretary Sandeep Poundrik at a government event in New Delhi.
India has sharply criticised the world-first CBAM policy since it was announced by the EU in 2021, saying the levy could hamper trade in steel. Since January, the regulatory framework brought in by the EU has led to fees on imports of steel, cement and other goods whose production results in high levels of carbon emissions.
India's steel exports to Europe are expected to fall as a consequence, prompting mills to seek alternative buyers in Africa and the Middle East, Reuters reported.
(Reporting by Neha Arora in New Delhi, writing by Hritam Mukherjee; Editing by Rashmi Aich)