After China dragged the US to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the European Union on Monday complained to the World Trade Organization over US tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. It seeks a full and unconditional exemption from the tariffs for those imports, rejecting the "national security" justification and believes they have been imposed just to protect US industry.

As a major exporter of steel and aluminum products, one of the concerns the EU has is that tariffs would not only limit the imports of its goods into the US, but also lead to its products flooding back into its own markets, causing an oversupply.

As tensions between world powers intensify when China and the US have threatened each other with tens of billions of dollars in tariffs in recent weeks, the US has banned American firms from selling parts and software to China’s ZTE Corp for seven years, potentially devastating for the telecoms equipment maker and rising tensions between the world’s two largest economies.

It is estimated that 25 percent to 30 percent of the components used in ZTE’s equipment, including smartphones and gear to build telecommunications networks, are provided by American companies. The action could be catastrophic for ZTE.

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