Exclusive-EU countries to seek import curbs on chemicals, plastics, sources say

By Philip Blenkinsop

BRUSSELS, Sept 10 (Reuters) - European governments plan to press the EU to deploy a rarely used trade defence tool to protect the chemicals and plastics sectors against surging imports, mainly from China, sources familiar with the discussions told Reuters. 

The European Union is toughening its trade stance as its industrial base, including a crisis-hit chemicals sector, comes under growing threat from cheap imports even as it faces the partial closure of many U.S. markets due to Trump administration tariffs.  

France, Italy and likely Germany — the bloc's three largest economies — plan to submit requests within weeks for broad import quotas, known as "safeguards", three sources told Reuters.

The requests would focus on polymer resin polyethylene terephthalate — commonly known as PET and widely used in packaging — along with chemicals epoxy resin and glass fibres.

The EU has over 150 trade measures in force, mostly as tariffs on narrowly defined products, to counter dumping or unfair subsidies. But it has only one set of safeguards, targeting ferro-alloys, along with a separate system covering import curbs for steel.

NEW TRADE CLIMATE TOUGHENS EU THINKING

While not confirming any specific request, France said it was in principle in favour of a safeguard investigation into certain chemicals and plastics.

"France ... considers that particular attention should be paid to the situation of the European chemicals sector, which is currently facing significant difficulties," an official on French Trade Minister Nicolas Forissier's staff said.

Italy was also interested in an investigation into certain chemicals used in the defence, automotive, energy, shipbuilding and infrastructure sectors, a source from an EU government said.

The German economy ministry said it was also open to such measures in principle. A source with the ministry said the chemical industry was preparing an application for a probe on certain products, and the government would take a view based on the European Commission's findings following that investigation. 

France and Italy were already among governments pushing for more robust EU trade defences. 

Germany, meanwhile, which opposed EU tariffs on China-built electric vehicles two years ago, now faces increasing pressure from industry to take a tougher line with China, its most important trading partner.

Safeguard requests can only be submitted by EU members. They also vote on final measures, which require support from a "qualified majority" of EU members — at least 15 representing 65% of the EU's population — a threshold that until recently was considered out of reach.    

A Commission spokesperson declined to comment on prospective cases. 

More wide-ranging than targeted measures, safeguards impose a tariff for volumes over set quotas and apply to all trading partners, even those with which the bloc has free trade agreements, such as Japan or Canada.

Brussels has tended to avoid safeguards, with many EU countries seeing them as protectionist. 

However, a new geopolitical climate, with U.S. tariffs and a burgeoning trade deficit with China, has changed EU thinking as industries warn that surging imports are putting European jobs at risk.

The Commission has seen a rapid increase in the number of trade complaints from companies and industry groups in recent years, and EU trade lawyers say there is now a backlog of around four months before a case is opened.   

European Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic acknowledged on Tuesday that the EU had been reluctant to use safeguards in the past but said the Commission was reviewing that stance, noting that free-trade partners were also deploying them against the EU. 

EUROPEAN CHEMICAL INDUSTRY IN CRISIS

Europe's chemical industry is facing one of its worst crises in 30 years with high energy prices, weak demand, competition from China and Asian suppliers flooding the global market.

Companies including BASF, Lanxess, and Wacker are cutting thousands of jobs.

The German chemical industry's trade association, VCI, said companies were preparing to assist EU member states' possible safeguard requests. 

VCI did not name the companies. It added that the association itself was not involved in the requests and was not calling for a broad chemicals safeguard.   

"We expect the European Commission, in its investigations, to take proper account of the differing interests and circumstances across the value chain," VCI said.

(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop; additional reporting by Maria Martinez in Berlin, Leigh Thomas in Paris, Giselda Vagnoni in Rome, Patricia Weiss in Frankfurt; Editing by Mark John and Joe Bavier)