This article is an on-site version of our Europe Express newsletter. Premium subscribers can sign up here<\/a> to get the newsletter delivered every weekday and fortnightly on Saturday morning. Standard subscribers can upgrade to Premium here<\/a>, or explore<\/a> all FT newsletters<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Good morning. Today, our trade and environment team report on the steel industry\u2019s tariff woes and our Rome colleagues unpack the Winter Olympics\u2019 Italian quirks.<\/p>\n I\u2019m away skiing next week so Laura will be running the show. Have a great weekend and see you in March.<\/p>\n EU steel exports to the US fell by almost a third as US tariffs<\/a> began to bite, but it\u2019s unlikely that trade ministers meeting today will give the industry a reprieve, write <\/strong><\/em>Andy Bounds<\/strong><\/em><\/a> and <\/strong><\/em>Alice Hancock<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Context: The EU and the US sealed a trade agreement last summer<\/a>, but steel and aluminium were not included in the deal which lowered tariffs on most EU exports to 15 per cent. <\/p>\n Eurostat data shows that exports of steel from the EU to the US fell by almost a third in the past six months of last year, compared with the same period in 2024, after the US hit them with tariffs of 50 per cent. <\/p>\n The \u201cblunt 50 per cent tariffs\u2009.\u2009.\u2009.\u2009are damaging our industry,\u201d said Axel Eggert, director-general of the steel industry body Eurofer. He added that the industry remained in limbo after the trade deal, which only committed the two sides to \u201cconsider the possibility\u201d of reducing steel tariffs. <\/p>\n The EU has moved to protect its industry by imposing 50 per cent tariffs on all steel imports above a certain quota, including from the US. But this has not convinced the US to come back to the negotiating table as it does not export much metal to the EU. <\/p>\n The European industry\u2019s pleas are however likely to fall on deaf ears among EU trade ministers meeting in Cyprus today. The US is not even officially on the agenda, which instead focuses on WTO reform, China and ongoing bilateral trade talks with the likes of Australia and the Philippines.<\/p>\n Even the European parliament, which has taken a more muscular approach to Washington than member states and the Commission, is only offering mild support. <\/p>\n \u201cThe EU agreed 50 per cent on steel and we have to keep to our agreements,\u201d said Bernd Lange, chair of the parliament\u2019s trade committee.<\/p>\n The committee has however proposed tackling another US levy of 50 per cent on derivative steel and aluminium goods \u2014 such as parts of washing machines or motorbikes \u2014 which lawmakers believe breaches the terms of the deal. <\/p>\n If those are not removed within six months of the EU ratifying the agreement, likely to happen in May, the parliament wants to raise the EU\u2019s tariffs on US steel again. Lange believes member states would back the clause.<\/p>\n The Netherlands has almost as many farm animals as people, and the strain on nature is showing<\/a>. But limits on using manure as fertiliser have sparked protests that are convulsing Dutch politics.<\/p>\n The Winter Olympics wrap up this weekend and host country Italy has had a bumper edition on the snow and ice. But the Games have still generated plenty of domestic controversies, write<\/strong><\/em> Amy Kazmin<\/strong><\/em><\/a> and <\/strong><\/em>Giuliana Ricozzi<\/strong><\/em><\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Context: Over the past two weeks, 2,900 athletes from more than 90 countries have competed in over 100 events, from figure skating to ski-mountaineering. Italy has had its best Winter Olympics ever, currently coming in third in the medal tally<\/a>.<\/p>\n But not everyone performed well. Public broadcaster Rai yesterday announced the resignation of Paolo Petrecca as head of Rai Sport, after repeated blunders while narrating the live Olympics opening ceremony.<\/p>\n His errors included wrongly naming the stadium, mistaking an Italian actress for global superstar Mariah Carey and failing to recognise players from Italy\u2019s gold medal-winning women\u2019s volleyball team. Rai staff had threatened industrial action unless he stood down.<\/p>\n The International Paralympic Committee\u2019s ruling that athletes from Russia and Belarus could participate in the opening ceremony of the upcoming Paralympics carrying their national flags also exposed tensions within Italy\u2019s governing coalition.<\/p>\n Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani and sports minister Andrea Abodi expressed Rome\u2019s \u201cabsolute opposition\u2019\u2018 to the ruling, given the ongoing military aggression in Ukraine. But deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini\u2019s pro-Russian League hailed the decision as \u201cpositive news\u201d.<\/p>\n Italy\u2019s Olympic organising committee also came under fire for only providing 10,000 free condoms in the Olympic Village. Branded with Olympic rings, they ran out after just three days. <\/p>\n The organising committee said that \u201chigher than anticipated demand\u201d led to stocks being depleted. Critics however noted that the number initially available were just a fraction of the 300,000 condoms reported distributed during the Paris Summer Olympics.<\/p>\n Defence ministers from France, Germany, Italy, the UK and Poland meet for E5 summit<\/a> in Krakow, together with EU chief diplomat Kaja Kallas.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n Informal meeting<\/a> of EU trade ministers in Nicosia.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n Free Lunch<\/strong> \u2014 Your guide to the global economic policy debate. Sign up here<\/a><\/p>\n The AI Shift<\/strong> \u2014 John Burn-Murdoch and Sarah O\u2019Connor dive into how AI is transforming the world of work. Sign up here<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Are you enjoying Europe Express? <\/em>Sign up here<\/em><\/a> to have it delivered straight to your inbox every workday at 7am CET and on Saturdays at noon CET. Do tell us what you think, we love to hear from you: <\/em>europe.express@ft.com<\/em><\/a>. Keep up with the latest European stories <\/em>@FT Europe<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nStopping the steel<\/span><\/h3>\n
Chart du jour: Shitstorm<\/span><\/h2>\n
Other side of the medal<\/span><\/h3>\n
What to watch today <\/span><\/h2>\n
\n
Now read these<\/span><\/h2>\n
Recommended newsletters for you <\/h3>\n