Mexico has renewed the 15 percent tariff on imports of iron and steel products from countries with which it does not have a free-trade agreement. The tariffs cover 186 products and were originally introduced in 2015 to protect domestic producers from Asian imports. The newest renewal cites the “crisis facing the international steel market caused […]
An antidumping/countervailing duty investigation will continue on imports of fabricated structural steel from Canada, China and Mexico following a decision by the U.S. International Trade Commission. The USITC has determined that there is reasonable indication the U.S. industry is being materially injured by imports of fabricated structural steel from Canada, China, and Mexico that are […]
U.S. tariffs on imports of steel, aluminum and Chinese goods have “an unmistakable negative impact” on the economy, says a new report from IHS Markit. The report, “The Economic and Industry Impact of Protectionism Tariffs on the Off-highway Equipment Sector,” estimates that Section 232 and Section 301 tariffs will result in an average GDP loss […]
It has been a year since President Trump imposed 25 percent tariffs on steel imports under Section 232, and The Wall Street Journal asked in its Sunday editorial: “How are those steel tariffs working”? The American Institute for International Steel, currently embroiled in a constitutional challenge to the use of Section 232 to regulate imports […]
As the market waits anxiously to see if President Trump gives in to the international pressure to rethink his national security tariff on steel imports, it’s clear that steel fabricators are not big fans of Section 232. Speaking at the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association annual meeting March 5 in Nashville, panelists’ comments reflected the divisive […]
The president’s authority to unilaterally withdraw the U.S. from NAFTA under U.S. law is unclear, according to a new report from the Congressional Research Service, but it does appear that the president would need congressional approval to terminate the U.S. law implementing NAFTA. The report’s conclusions could embolden lawmakers pushing back against President Trump’s threats […]
Steel Market Update asked: One year after President Trump announced the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, have the tariffs been good for your business? For a small majority, 54 percent, of those responding to SMU’s market trends questionnaire, the answer is no. For 46 percent, yes. Opinions are split nearly down the middle. […]
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) is onboard with an effort to restrict President Trump’s ability to use national security as a reason to impose tariffs. Grassley reportedly has told his staff to work with Sens. Pat Toomey (R-PA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) to create legislation that would garner enough Senate support to override […]
The Trump administration released its 2019 Annual Trade Policy Agenda and 2018 Annual Report on Feb. 28, outlining its trade policies and initiatives for 2019. The report details how the administration is “rebalancing trade to benefit Americans.” Priorities for 2019 include: Supporting national security through economic security and free, fair and reciprocal trade relations Strengthening […]
The Steel Manufacturers Association remains a strong supporter of Section 232, even as the tariffs face increased scrutiny as a stumbling block to passage of the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement. SMA President Phil Bell defends the 25 percent tariffs on steel imports from critics who contend they unfairly tax downstream steel consumers. “The gloom and […]
A review by Commerce of antidumping duties on carbon and alloy cut-to-length steel plate from Austria has resulted in an amendment lowering the rate from 53.7 to a new final weighted-average dumping margin of 28.57. Commerce published its final determination in the investigation of CTL steel plate imports from Austria on April 4, 2017. Following […]
In the recent op-ed below, American Iron and Steel Institute President and CEO Tom Gibson reiterated AISI’s support of steel tariffs and opposition to congressional legislation called “The Bicameral Congressional Trade Authority Act,” which would prematurely terminate the tariffs. “The massive overcapacity in steel still exists globally. And China in particular is producing steel at record levels—exceeding […]
Mexico’s Ministry of Economy announced last week that it will renew tariffs of 15 percent on imports of steel from countries that it does not have a free trade agreement with. The tariff does not impact steel imports from the U.S. or Canada. The Ministry also stated that before signing a new North American trade […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has denied a number of requests for the exclusion of imported semifinished products, chiefly slabs, from the Section 232 tariffs. The analysis of one such denial is emblematic of the reasoning […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: We are about to celebrate (or mourn, as the case might be) the first anniversary of “national security” tariffs on steel and aluminum. As we all know, in March 2018 President Trump proclaimed 25 percent tariffs on most steel […]
The Commerce Department announced Tuesday that it has initiated new antidumping duty (AD) and countervailing duty (CVD) investigations to determine whether fabricated structural steel from Canada, China and Mexico is being sold in the United States at less than fair value, and to find if producers in those three countries are receiving unfair subsidies. The […]
The Bureau of Industry and Security, a division of the Department of Commerce, announced today that is has denied the requests from California Steel Industries and Evraz Steel for exclusion of semi-finished steel slabs from the Section 232 tariffs. The BIS agreed with an analysis by the International Trade Administration that there is sufficient production, […]
NLMK USA was not among the mills to learn earlier today that the Commerce Department had denied their requests for relief from the Section 232 tariffs on imported slabs. California Steel Industries and Evraz got the bad news. But NLMK USA President and CEO Robert Miller is still angry about it. “The administration, Commerce, BIS […]
The Department of Commerce announced an affirmative final determination on Feb. 21 in the antidumping and countervailing duty investigations of imports of large diameter welded pipe from Korea and Turkey and the antidumping investigations on LDW pipe imports from Canada and Greece. The merchandise covered by the Canada, Greece, Korea, and Turkey investigations is welded […]
President Trump has received the long-awaited report from the Commerce Department on whether imports of automobiles and auto parts pose a threat to national security and now has 90 days to consider whether to place a 25 percent tariff on automotive imports under Section 232. Details of the Commerce findings were not disclosed but the […]
Section 232 tariffs on imported autos and auto parts would cause “substantial harm” to the U.S. economy, says a new report by the Center for Automotive Research. CAR analyzed the impact of 25 percent auto tariffs in 10 policy scenarios, concluding that, in all cases, the outcomes “are all profoundly negative for consumers, for new […]
Canada is stepping up its efforts to convince the Trump administration to lift the Section 232 restrictions on steel and aluminum. After meeting with Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley earlier in the week, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland appealed to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Saturday for help in removing the tariffs. “We spoke a […]
The government shutdown is over but much of the data that Steel Market Update uses in its regular analyses for Premium members is still not available. This is a brief summary of where we are today in the process of data recovery. The longest government shutdown in U.S. history, lasting 35 days from Dec. 22 […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: On Friday, President Trump signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019, the spending bill that averts a second government shutdown. The legislation, which funds government operations through Sept. 30, 2019, essentially keeps spending at fiscal 2018 levels, but […]
A new report by the U.S. Trade Representative says that China is moving further away from an open market and, instead, is embracing a state-led approach to the economy and trade. As a member of the World Trade Organization, China is expected to comply with its bilateral and multilateral commitments, but has demonstrated that its […]
A recently published report by the U.S. International Trade Commission concerning the import of large diameter welded pipe from China and India had mixed results regarding injury to domestic producers. The Commission made a final affirmative determination of injury in the antidumping investigation of LDW line pipe from China, but voted to terminate the accompanying […]
Manufacturers of foodservice equipment say the Trump administration tariffs on Chinese goods and imported steel and aluminum have raised the cost of materials by 6-15 percent and made it more difficult for American companies to compete. According to a January North American Association of Food Equipment Manufacturers (NAFEM) survey, the tariffs are hurting companies whose […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: Section 232 tariffs are increasingly in the news. Today, I describe two issues that are central to the prosperity (and in many cases the survival) of steel-using manufacturers. Exclusions With the end of the government shutdown, the exclusion […]
The following statement by Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross supporting the U.S. Reciprocal Trade Act was published by Fox News and the Commerce Department on Feb. 6, 2019: Americans live in a world where other countries impose high tariffs and non-tariff barriers to trade. U.S. exporters face enormous obstacles in foreign markets, and yet, we […]
A petition filed with the U.S. Commerce Department on Feb. 4 alleges that fabricated structural steel from Canada, China and Mexico is being dumped on the U.S. market and is benefitting from countervailing subsidies. Products covered by the petition include carbon and alloy (including stainless) steel products such as angles, columns, beams, girders, plates, flange […]