Minister Lintilä to attend ministerial meeting on steel production

The international ministerial meeting will discuss the global excess capacity in steel production that is causing competitiveness problems for the steel sector at the video conference. Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä will represent Finland at the meeting on 26 October 2020.

The Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity (GFSEC) was set up by the G20 countries and OECD in 2016. The purpose of the international forum is to find solutions to the excess capacity in the sector, i.e. the situation where the steel production capacity exceeds the demand, that causes serious difficulties for the steel industry.

“Steel is needed in many industrial sectors and in different production stages, including in automotive industry and building. This is why the discussions are important to find a shared global understanding of the market outlook for steel and how the actions of different states influence the market situation,” Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä says.

Minister Lintilä also stresses that countries must give up any practices that may distort competition.

Economically sustainable and competitive steel industry as the target

The particular topic of the forum is that, at the moment, the steel production potential clearly exceeds the demand for steel. The key target is to reduce excess capacity, because competitive steel production that operates on an economically sustainable basis benefits not only the producers but also those using steel.

The forum collects data on steel production and on support measures aimed to increase it. With its actions, the forum aims to promote steel industry and policies that are based on free trade and competition.

Inquiries:
Nina Alatalo, Adviser to the Minister of Economic Affairs (EU Affairs), Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, tel. +358 29 504 7171
Anita Silanterä, Chief Specialist, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, tel. +358 29 504 7256