13 July 2026 – This week is off to a dirty start. Stainless steel: already 80,000 MT of slabs on their way to Europe, or: EU market protection à la carte. Last week, the European Commission launched its “Have your say” consultation on the draft delegated regulation on the sale and repurchase of CBAM allowances – the latest bureaucratic madness “Made in Brussels”.
Stainless Steel: Already 80,000 MT of Slabs on Their Way to Europe
50% Tariffs for Everyone, Except the Right Ones
On 1 July 2026, the new EU steel tariffs regulation entered into force: brutal quota cuts, new tariffs of 50% on top of existing measures. For importers, traders, and especially medium-sized steel processors, this means existential cuts.
Slabs Without Protection, Corporations Without Limits
At the same time, tens of thousands of tonnes of stainless steel slabs are leaving Indonesia for the EU every month: in April 2026, 30,000 tonnes went to Belgium; in May, almost 50,000 tonnes were already headed to Italy.
Unlike hot- and cold-rolled stainless steel from Indonesia, slabs are not subject to trade defence measures, only CBAM. And slabs can only be processed by large integrated stainless steel producers in the EU. No SME, no trader benefits from this. Only the corporations that therefore benefit twice from the new market protection regime.
The Commission Knows, and Does Nothing
The EU Commission knows this data. Indonesian export statistics and European import statistics are public. Yet Brussels silently tolerates its own safeguard measures being systematically undermined through a single product category.
Level playing field? Apparently that applies only to those who can afford lobbyists.
CBAM Certificate Platform: Brussels’ Next Bureaucracy Trap for Importers and SMEs
CBAM Consultation Runs Until 6 August, Right in the Middle of the Summer Holidays
Last week, the EU Commission launched its “Have Your Say” consultation on the draft delegated regulation on the sale and repurchase of CBAM certificates. What sounds technical will hit domestic importers hard, especially small and medium-sized enterprises.
Two Systems, One Chaos
The draft provides that purchase requests are to be submitted in the CBAM Registry, while payments are to be processed through a separate central platform. Two systems, two interfaces, double the sources of error.
The draft contains no obligation for a unified user interface, API interfaces, ERP integration, or a test environment before live operation. For SMEs, this means manual processes and external advisory costs.
Irrevocable Once Entered
Particularly serious: purchase requests can no longer be amended once entered. Repurchase requests are even stricter. They are “irrevocable and non-amendable” from the moment of entry, even before any authority review or payout.
Only one single repurchase request is allowed per year. A simple typing error forces a restart of the entire procedure or, in the worst case, means loss of capital.
Right in the middle of the summer holidays: a coincidence? Certainly not
The consultation runs until 6 August 2026, right in the middle of the European summer break. Coincidence? Hardly. The Commission has deliberately timed the publication so that as few people as possible are around to respond.
On top of this comes a structural problem with “Have Your Say”: anyone submitting a statement is publicly visible. That works like a pillory and discourages clear criticism, especially from companies that depend on administrative goodwill. The Commission knows this. And exploits it.
Our demand: statements in “Have Your Say” must be anonymizable. Only then can a genuine feedback channel emerge instead of an alibi consultation.
SMEs, importers, and associations should nevertheless participate. Every critical voice counts. The consultation is available here and runs until 6 August 2026.
Whoever remains silent agrees.
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We at the Gerber Group have been trading in stainless steel worldwide for over 20 years. We are your experts when it comes to purchasing, import, logistics and services. Information is a vital part of this. Because only then can you and we make the right decisions. Do you have any questions? Contact us now.
Disclaimer: Many things here represent our opinion. Others are information from the Internet. We can therefore never claim to be correct or complete. And never base a business decision solely on the news you receive from us.
