Colombia raised steel import tariffs to 35% on products from China, Russia, Turkey and India to protect its domestic industry, which represents 10% of industrial GDP and supports 45,000 jobs plus 25,000 suppliers. The one-year measure mirrors Mexico’s permanent tariff extension on Asian steel imports, as both countries respond to regional oversupply concerns with Asian output projected to reach 721 million tons by 2027. Mexico’s steel sector faces 55% capacity utilization and declining US exports, prompting coordinated Latin American protectionist measures against what officials dub as unfair trade practices from Asia.

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