The European Commission has sent member states a draft proposal to extend the steel import safeguards for another three years.

The Commission is also expected to increase the quota volumes by three per cent; which are due to expire on June 30.

The import quotas were expected to be extended for one year. However, market insiders believe that this would have created hesitancies.

If the volume increase applies to products of all origins and not only to those that have not been subject to antidumping or countervailing duties, as has been rumoured previously, this will be good news, especially for Turkey and India.

There have also been talks about lifting Section 232 measures by the United States, which has prompted the European Union to take action to protect its domestic market from trade diversion.

Even the UK has extended steel import quotas for some products for three years while removing the measure for some other products. The country imposed its own quota system after Brexit.