The International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa (ITAC) has, effective from 2 May 2025, imposed safeguard duties of 13%, 11% and 9% consecutively for the next three years in addition to the existing duty of 10%, thus totalling 23% for the first year, then 21%, and 19% in year 3 on flat-rolled steel products, imported from all countries.

The gazetted duties and products can be viewed here:

• 13% safeguard duty on flat rolled products from all countries from 2 May 2025 until 2 May 2026;
• 11% safeguard duty on flat rolled products from all countries from 2 May 2026 until 2 May 2027; and
• 9% safeguard duty on flat rolled products from all countries from 2 May 2027 until 2 May 2028.

The decision follows an application by the South African Iron and Steel Institute (SAISI) on behalf of AMSA for remedial action. The tariff applies to all countries except listed developing countries which collectively account for less than 10% of imports.

ITAC announced the final determination recently, citing a 105% surge in steel imports between 2020 and 2023 – almost half of which originated from China, 22% from the EU and 6.7% from the US – as the basis for the safeguard measure.

In its preliminary determination on July 5, 2024, ITAC said the surge in volume of imports is recent enough, sudden enough, sharp enough and significant enough to warrant safeguard measures and that the Sacu industry is suffering serious injury.

“Although there are factors other than the imports that contributed to the injury, such as reduced demand in the steel market and lack of infrastructure investment, labour unrest, [higher] input costs, and energy supply and logistics constraints, these factors did not sufficiently detract from the causal link between the serious injury suffered by SAISI and the surge in volumes of imports resulting from the unforeseen developments,” it said in the preliminary determination.

SAISI requested protection against a flood of imports, which ITAC agreed to by imposing the annual 9% tariff on hot-rolled steel for the next three years.

Hot-rolled steel, which is processed above 972°C for strength and flexibility, is used in mining and earth-moving equipment, pipes, tubes and water tanks.

Hot-rolled steel is used for the manufacturing of general engineering products such as containers, mining equipment, small and large bore pipes, earth moving equipment, gas cylinders, truck trailers and water tanks, among others. Smaller tubing was used for school furniture, while hot-rolled slit material was used for lip channels, it noted.

Because of pricing and supply issues the product was being imported by merchants, service centres, and fabricators who converted the material into pipes and tubes.

In its investigation, ITAC found that “unforeseen developments” such as global oversupply had harmed producers in the Southern African Customs Union (Sacu), which comprises South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho and Eswatini.

While the commission acknowledged that overwhelming competition in itself is not inherently unfair, it concluded there is a clear “causal link” between the surge in imports and declining local production.

In its submission to the commission, the Botswana government reported that it had conducted a similar analysis between 2020 and 2024, which confirmed that imports had the same impact on its local industry.

Critics argue instead that AMSA’s outdated production methods and high prices make it uncompetitive in the current global market, thus necessitating protective measures.

Once the continent’s leading producer of steel products such as rods, bars and rails, AMSA has received three bailouts since 2024 amounting to R3 billion in an effort to stave off downsizing.

In addition to the recent bailout, the department of trade, industry and competition previously imposed a 9% tariff on long steel and a 52% anti-dumping duty on steel imports at the behest of AMSA.