GENEVA, March 7: The European Union launched its counter attack on US steel tariffs here on Thursday but European and other countries face a long wait for a WTO ruling, and with it business uncertainty for the world steel industry and its customers.

The European Union officially lodged its complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) over planned United States’ tariffs on most steel imports, a WTO official said.

But checks and balances written into the rules laid down by the global trade body make them tricky to operate very quickly, said WTO analyst David Woods, who heads World Trade Agenda Consultants.

The 15-nation bloc is gearing up for a double-barrelled counter attack to the US move of up to 30-per cent tariffs on imported steel, sources close to the Geneva-based WTO said on Thursday.

The EU is also separately planning to press for consultations with the US administration with a view to claiming compensation under the WTO’s safeguard agreement, the source said.

If the talks fail, the EU could then seek to retaliate under certain conditions through the withdrawal of concessions to the US or other WTO obligations.

Fearful the EU will be the target of a steel surplus as a result of the US measures, it has indicated it could also go ahead and impose safeguard measures.

DEPLORABLE: European Central Bank President Wim Duisenberg described the decision by the United States to impose tariffs on most steel imports as “deplorable” and suggested the move could “have something to do with the level of the dollar”.