Approximately 1 million people working in the stainless-steel sector are waiting for the conclusion of the anti-dumping investigation launched by the Ministry of Trade upon the application of Posco Assan regarding imported stainless steel.
The Federation of Home and Kitchenware (EVFED), the Association of Industrial Kitchen, Laundry, Service and Catering Equipment Manufacturers and Businesspeople (TUSİD), the Association of Houseware Manufacturers and Exporters (EVSİD), the Glassware Association (ZÜCDER), the Association of Stainless-Steel Manufacturers and Businesspeople (PASİD), the Association of Emerging Home and Living Brands (GEEM), and the Stainless Steel Association (PASDER) recently came together and issued a joint statement, expressing that they expect the ongoing investigation to conclude in favor of manufacturers in Türkiye.
300 thousand people will lose their jobs
Industry representatives emphasized that it is not appropriate to launch such an investigation even though Posco Assan is not a producer, stating:
“Posco Assan is merely a rolling mill that performs cold-reduction processing on the stainless flat steel it imports. Concluding the investigation with an additional tax would have negative consequences in every sense, from exports to production, from employment to inflation. Most importantly, if this investigation results against our sectors, approximately 300 thousand people will lose their jobs. We believe that the Ministry of Trade will take this into consideration when making its decision.”
A loss of 1.5 billion dollars in exports
Industry representatives stressed that an additional tax would lead to inflation in the domestic market and a significant contraction in exports:
“The decision is about to be announced. It would not be right to act based on the future of a single company when making this decision. We also know that the issue is being evaluated in all its details. Implementing an additional tax on stainless steel will cause at least a 25% loss of turnover in the domestic market and a 1.5-billion-dollar decrease in exports; it creates a fatal impact that will jeopardize the employment of hundreds of thousands of people. Instead of discussing additional taxes on a raw material that is not produced in Türkiye, we should be discussing support mechanisms that strengthen our competitiveness and the perception of ‘Made in Türkiye.’ The fact that every product entering a home today is already 12% more expensive to manufacture clearly shows the burden on the sector.”
Request for a meeting with President Erdoğan
On the other hand, industry associations announced that they had meetings with Vice President Cevdet Yılmaz, Minister of Trade Ömer Bolat, and Deputy Ministers of Trade Mustafa Tuzcu and Volkan Ağar, and stated that they have most recently requested an appointment with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Ekonomim
Comments
No comment yet.