The Egyptian Ministry of Investment and Foreign Trade has announced provisional safeguard duties on flat steel products, according to two WTO notifications.
For hot-rolled flat steel, the Ministry proposed a 13.6pct duty with a minimum of EGP 3,673 (USD 76) per ton. The measure covers HS codes 7208.10, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27, 7208.36, 7208.37, 7208.38, 7208.39, 7208.40, 7208.51, 7208.52, 7208.53, 7208.54, 7208.90, 7211.14, 7211.19, 7225.30, 7225.40, 7226.91, and 7226.99. The Ministry said imports of hot-rolled flat steel surged 31pct YoY in 2024 and 116pct compared to 2021, causing serious injury to domestic producers. Sales, market share, production, and capacity utilization all fell, while employment dropped 9pct and net profits plunged 70pct.
In a separate notification, provisional duties were proposed on cold-rolled coil (CRC) at 11.11pct (minimum EGP 4,152 (USD 86) per ton), galvanized steel at 12.16pct (minimum EGP 4,812 (USD 100) per ton), and pre-painted steel at 4.94pct (minimum EGP 2,584 (USD 54) per ton). Products exempted include CRC prepared for enamelling, galvanized steel with antibacterial coatings or plastisol/PET/VCM laminates, and pre-painted galvanized steel with Al-Zn alloy coating. These measures cover HS codes 720915, 720916, 720917, 720918, 720925, 720926, 720927, 720928, 720990, 721123, 721129, 721190, 722692, 721041, 721049, 721230, 721250, 722592, 722699, 721070, 721090, 721240, 721260, and 722599.
The Trade Remedies Sector (TRS), which launched the investigation on 10 September 2025, said imports of CRC, galvanized, and pre-painted steel rose 195pct in 2023 and 237pct in 2024 compared to 2022. These sharp and sudden increases, combined with Egypt’s relatively low customs duties, inflicted serious injury on local producers. TRS warned that without immediate measures, the damage would be difficult to repair.
Both safeguard measures are set to take effect on 14 September 2025 upon publication in the Official Gazette and will remain in force for 200 days.
1 USD / 48.2 EGP
