Economy
PMA Members See Impact from Tariffs
Written by Sandy Williams
April 30, 2018
Metalforming manufacturers are expecting steady business conditions during the next three months, according to the April 2018 Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) Business Conditions Report. PMA members, however, are seeing negative impacts from the Section 232 aluminum and steel tariffs.
Orders are expected to remain steady in the next few months. Manufacturers said daily shipping levels rose slightly in April.
Only 2 percent of metalforming companies reported workers on short time or layoff, down from 3 percent in March and 6 percent in April 2017.
“PMA is beginning to receive reports from its members of negative impacts from the Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs, including price spikes and longer lead times,” said PMA President Roy Hardy. “It’s important to note that these tariffs impact domestic and imported steel and aluminum products that could disadvantage PMA members when competing against overseas companies. For this reason, PMA has joined other steel- and aluminum-using industry groups in asking President Trump to terminate these tariffs as soon as possible.”
April’s PMA report was based on a sampling of 123 metalforming companies in the U.S. and Canada.
Sandy Williams
Read more from Sandy WilliamsLatest in Economy
ISM: Manufacturing growth remained down in August
US manufacturing activity remained muted in August despite a marginal gain from July's recent low, according to supply executives contributing to the Institute for Supply Management (ISM)’s latest report.
Steel Summit: Dr. Basu blames tariffs for riskier path ahead
Steel executives packed the main conference hall of the 2025 SMU Steel Summit on Tuesday, Aug. 26, to hear economist Dr. Anirban Basu lay out his blunt view of tariffs, inflation, and demand.
Steel Summit: Schneider sees SDI ‘on the edge of a very good run’
Steel Dynamics Inc. (SDI) President and Chief Operating Officer, Barry Schneider, remains bullish about the Fort Wayne, Ind.-based steelmaker’s position in the current market.
US housing starts gain momentum in July
US housing starts rose in July both month-on-month and year-on-year, according to figures from the US Census Bureau.
Manufacturing in New York state improves again in August
Business activity in New York state improved modestly in August. It was just the second positive reading for the general business conditions index in six months.