Egypt protects the domestic flat steel industry with a 13.6% guarantee.

Following a protected investigation against the import of Hot Colled Coil (HRC) to Egypt, initiated at the end of April this year, the authorities issued a notification to the World Trade Organization (WTO) regarding preliminary measures and the imposition of a guarantee obligation. Such a move is called for to protect local flat steel from excessive imports of HRC with a measure covering all origins, and is likely to significantly slow down Egypt's import activity in this segment.

According to the notification, imports of hot flat steel increased by 31 percent compared to 2023, and by STRIKING 116 percent compared to 2021. To impose a preliminary warranty duty of 13.6 percent ad Valorem of the CIF value, with a minimum specific duty of 3673 EGP/MT on hot flat steel, effective from September 14 to April 1, 2026. These products are currently falling under the codes 7208.10, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27, 7208.36, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27, 7208.36, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27, 7208.36, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27, 7208.36, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27.36, 7208.25, 7208.26, 7208.27, 7208. 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. Protective investigation, China, Russia, Japan and sometimes Turkey sold HRC on the Egyptian market, and the flow decreased after the announcement in April. With a 13.6 percent commitment protection, sources expect Egypt to remain virtually closed to imports of HRC. "Here we will consider about 70 USD/mt in addition to import offers, which can only be accepted if the local HRC rises to higher levels," said HRC manufacturer Steelorbis. This week, the local HRC in Egypt is available at a price of about $600/million. Tons, with estimated offers from Russia at a price of 500-510 USD/MT CFR and from China at a price of $515-525/MT CFR, the sources said.