The protectionist sentiment and the confrontational approach that have emerged in the European Union are worrying, as well as being regrettable and misleading.

On Friday, the European Commission opened new anti-dumping investigations on steel products originating from China, and the European steel industry organized a demonstration against so-called Chinese dumping in the EU market and the granting of Market Economy Status to China.

Nobody should be under any illusion: overcapacity, including excess capacity in the global steel sector is one of the many challenges we are all faced with. Not only the European steel industry has been hard hit, iron and steel industries in China and many other emerging economies are suffering badly from excessive production and flagging demand.