Steel CEOs Urge Lawmakers ‘Don’t Blink’ on Trump Tariffs

The CEOs of top U.S. steelmakers Nucor Corp, U.S. Steel Corp, ArcelorMittal SA and Commercial Metals Co. told the Congressional Steel Caucus that the Section 232 steel tariffs were just starting to allow their industry to recover from damage caused by years of dumped imports and needed to be kept in place long-term.

Trump imposed the 25-percent global tariffs on steel imports a year ago to protect the industry from imports, citing national security grounds under a Cold War-era trade law. The move drew retaliation by countries including China, Canada, Mexico, Turkey and the European Union.

Little has been done to reduce excess steel production capacity in China that U.S. producers blame for most of the industry’s woes, and without the tariffs, unfairly traded imports would flood back into the U.S. market, the executives said.

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