Trade Cases
Canada USW Calls for 'Buy Canadian' After U.S. Kills KXL
Written by Michael Cowden
January 28, 2021
The Biden administration’s cancellation of the Keystone XL pipeline has prompted the United Steelworkers union in Canada to prod Ottawa to implement “Buy Canadian” policies in a bid to stem job losses.
“Layoffs and plant closures seem to be the only orders on the books for many Canadian steel plants,” said USW Western Canada Director Stephen Hunt.
“This comes at a time when you have major government infrastructure projects utilizing offshore pipe and rebar instead of using steel manufactured here at home,” he said.
The USW accuses the Canadian government of not giving priority to Canada-made steel in several mega-projects. They include a liquified natural gas plant in Kitimat, B.C.; the replacement of the Pattullo Bridge, also in British Columbia; and replacement lines for a project overseen by SaskEnergy and TC Energy.
TC Energy, previously known as TransCanada, is the company behind the Keystone XL pipeline. President Biden revoked the permit for the pipeline, which was to transmit oil from Canada’s tar sands to refineries on the Gulf of Mexico, on environmental grounds.
“I call on the Prime Minister and Premiers across the country to ‘Stand Up for Steel’ by implementing procurement policies to ‘Buy Canadian’ for all major infrastructure projects,” Hunt said. “We must do more to protect our manufacturing industries in Canada as we cannot afford more job losses.”
Hunt’s call echoes pronouncements made in the United States by the USW, domestic steelmakers and the Biden administration concerning “Buy American” laws. Those rules, first passed in the wake of the Great Depression, stipulate that U.S.-made products be given preference in government-funded infrastructure work.
The USW represents more than 11,000 workers in the Canadian steel industry.
By Michael Cowden, Michael@SteelMarketUpdate.com
Michael Cowden
Read more from Michael CowdenLatest in Trade Cases
Nippon respects HR dumping decision, expects lower rate in next review
Nippon Steel says it respects the US Department of Commerce’s findings in administrative reviews despite the agency recently assigning the Japanese steelmaker a higher dumping margin.
CRU: Trump tariffs could stimulate steel demand
Now that the dust has settled from the US election, as have the immediate reactions in the equity, bond, and commodity markets, this is a prime opportunity to look at how a second Trump presidency might affect the US steel market.
Rebar import duties to continue for 5 more years
Import duties on rebar from a handful of countries will continue to be collected for at least another five years.
Leibowitz: Trump 2.0 signals Cold War 2.0 trade and China policies
China is one of the elephants in the room as the transition to Trump 2.0 continues. While the people and policies are still being formulated, it’s possible to detect a strategy for the new Trump administration. I think there are two imperative issues that the new administration needs to balance. The Trump strategy will, I believe, follow the following points. First, trade is one of the issues that got President Trump elected in 2016 and 2024—it nearly got him elected in 2020, save for the pandemic. If President Trump had won in 2020, I might be writing chronicles about the end of his eight years in the White House now instead of projecting what the next Trump administration would accomplish or break. Oh, well—that’s life. Trade will necessarily be a key feature of relations with China for the next four years.
Commerce says Nippon dumped steel in US in 2022-23
Commerce determined a significant dumping margin for hot-rolled steel imports from Japan's Nippon Steel.