Category: Features

The Trump administration has revealed the list of derivative steel products being added to the Section 232 tariff list.

US steel mills produced an estimated 1,670,000 short tons (st) of raw steel last week, according to recently released American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) figures.

I think it’s fair to say that the last few weeks – and last week especially – have been among the most intense for any of us covering steel (or aluminum).

With a chronic trade deficit, the administration will continue to cite more tariffs as necessary. This is in error, as noted above. Yet the base of President Trump’s support does not see it that way. More tariffs are possible. But the only way to reduce the US trade deficit substantially is to close the gap between savings and investment in the United States.

In this Premium analysis we examine North American oil and natural gas prices, drill rig activity, and crude oil stock levels. Trends in energy prices and rig counts serve as leading indicators for oil country tubular goods (OCTG) and line pipe demand.

The latest in the new coated steel investigation and the expiry review of steel plate from six countries.

Two US trade associations representing domestic steel producers have come out in favor of President Donald Trump’s announcement on reciprocal tariffs.

The CRU Metallics Price Indicator (CRUmpi) rose by 5.0% m/m in February to 293.7, a five-month high. Scrap prices increased in different degrees this month, reflecting the confidence level in the steel market across different regions. While US scrap prices rose sharply m/m due to limited availability, those in Europe and Asia had only small […]

A look at how SMU survey respondents are reacting to President Trump's recent actions on tariffs.

President Donald J. Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum announcing the “Fair and Reciprocal Plan” for trade on Thursday. This would eventually see the levying of reciprocal tariffs on trading partners after a trade analysis for each country is conducted.

Iron ore shipments on the Great Lakes saw a sharp decline in January 2025, according to the Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA).

Unions members on both sides of the US-Canada border are speaking out against President Trump’s tariffs on Canadian steel. They say the tariffs threaten to disrupt supply chains and subvert decades of economic cooperation. The United Steelworkers (USW) has more than 850,000 total members in North America, with 225,000 in Canada.

While American steelmakers welcome the revival of the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, other nations' steel industries are calling for retaliation against President Trump's unilateral action of upping the levies on trading allies and removing all product exemptions.

Earlier this week, SMU polled steel buyers on an array of topics, ranging from market prices, demand, and inventories to imports and evolving market events.

Josh Spoores, principal analyst at CRU, will be the featured speaker on the next SMU Community Chat webinar on Wednesday, Feb. 19, at 11 a.m. ET. The live webinar is free. A recording will be available for free to SMU members. You can register here.

US steel prices set to jump after President Trump levies new tariffs.

A lot of the changes basically entail rolling back what I’ll call, for fun, Section 232 Lite. S232 Lite resulted from watering down what I’ll call OG S232 – the one first imposed in March 2018 - with exemptions and exclusions over the years. Now, OG Section 232, is back with its across-the-board 25% tariffs against everyone.

AISI and SMA praise Trump tariffs.

The new version of Section 232 goes into effect on 12:01 am ET on March 12, according to the executive order. The latest iteration of Section 232 removed quotas, exemptions, and other carve outs that had accumulated over years.

December 2024 marks the fourth month in a row that steel exports have declined, now at the lowest monthly rate recorded since December 2022.

US mills produced an estimated 1,675,000 short tons (st) of raw steel last week, the highest weekly rate recorded since mid-December according to data recently released by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI).

The Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA) has elected eight officers to serve on its 2025-27 SMA Executive Committee.

President Donald Trump said he would announce 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imported to the US, according to Bloomberg. Trump said he would make an announcement about the matter on Monday. It was not clear when the tariffs might take effect.

An exciting first look at the results from SMU's first scrap survey.

Following the one-year low recorded in November, steel imports rose by 3% in December to 2.14 million short tons (st) according to final US Commerce Department data. January could be the highest month for steel imports witnessed in nearly three years.

The day-to-day bustle of these announcements should not obscure what they signal for other potential tariff measures in the near term and a revamped trade and economic policy in the long term. 

US rig counts remain marginally above multi-year lows. The drop in Canadian activity comes just one week after reaching a near seven-year high.

After reaching multi-month lows in mid-January, SMU’s Steel Buyers’ Sentiment Indices rebounded this week to some of the highest readings recorded in months.

As Wolfe Research’s Timna Tanners put it in her opening talk at Tampa on Monday afternoon, we’re living in a world of “Trumplications” now. That probably means – at least in the short term – higher scrap costs, lower imports from countries hit with or threated tariffs, and higher steel prices. SMU data reflects that. Scrap went up in January. More than 75% of the respondents to our more recent survey expect scrap to go up again February, maybe by a lot. Lead times, meanwhile, have been ticking upward this month. It started with hot-rolled coil and plate earlier this month. Now we’re seeing coated lead times extending too.

While we have seen some movements in recent weeks, steel mill production times remain within a few days of the historical lows observed over the last two years, a trend observed since mid-2024.