Indian companies are bracing for a possible flood of steel imports should the U.S. and China follow through on their threats about a trade war.

Duties imposed by the U.S. would trigger “trade diversion” from other steel makers, who would then dump their products in India, said Bhaskar Chatterjee, secretary general at Indian Steel Association, in an email. As much as 80 million tons of steel -- or 17 percent of global exports, based on World Steel Association data -- could be diverted to markets such as India, according to Seshagiri Rao, joint managing director of the country’s top mill, JSW Steel Ltd.

The comments highlight the uncertainties surrounding global trade ahead of July 6, when President Donald Trump’s tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese goods are scheduled to kick in, a move that China has vowed to retaliate against. India stands out as an attractive destination because it’s the world’s fastest-growing major economy. The country has also much riding on the health of its steel industry because it’s expected to overtake Japan as the world’s second-largest steel-producing nation as soon as this year.

Read here the blow-by-blow account of how the U.S.-China tariff war is now a global threat