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European Council Conclusions on the Recovery Plan and Multiannual Financial Framework for 2021-2027
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The European Steel Association welcomes the European Council conclusion of 17-21 July 20201 on a comprehensive package of €1824.3 billion which combines the multiannual financial framework (MFF) 2021-2027 and an extraordinary EU recovery effort under the Next Generation EU (NGEU) instrument, helping the EU to rebuild after the pandemic and support investment in the green and digital transitions.
We also welcome the legislative proposals submitted by the Commission on 16July 2020 to reform the Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS)2345 in order to secure sufficient support for R&D in the steel industry. The Fund that has a size of €1.5 billion was created mainly from contributions of the EU steel and coal industries. The proposed reform should free around €350 million for the Clean Steel Partnership for the period 2021 – 2027 from the RFCS assets and a yearly R&D spending of at
least €40 million.
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Strasbourg, 17 December 2025 – The European Commission’s latest proposals on the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), unveiled today, correctly identify several loopholes that risk undermining its effectiveness, notably regarding EU exports, downstream sectors and circumvention practices. However, despite these laudable efforts, the measures put forward fail to deliver a comprehensive and durable response to carbon and jobs leakage, warns the European Steel Association (EUROFER).
A milestone occasion to quickly and effectively restore affordable electricity, to relaunch the
decarbonization and strengthen the international competitiveness of the European steel
industry.
Brussels, 02 December 2025 – Unchanged negative conditions – U.S. tariffs and trade disruptions, economic and geopolitical tensions, protracted weak demand and still high energy prices – continue to weigh on the European steel market. EUROFER’s latest Economic and Steel Market Outlook confirms for 2025 another recession in both apparent steel consumption (-0.2%, unchanged) and steel-using sectors (-0.5%, revised from -0.7%). A potential recovery is expected only in 2026 for the Steel Weighted Industrial Production index (SWIP) (+1.8%, stable) and for apparent steel consumption (+3%, slightly revised from +3.1%) – although consumption volumes would still remain well below pre-pandemic levels. Steel imports retained historically high shares (27%), while exports plummeted (-9%) in the first eight months of 2025.
The European Steel Association (EUROFER)
172 Avenue de Cortenbergh
1000 Brussels
Belgium
Email: mail@eurofer.eu
Phone: +32 (0) 2 738 79 20
