Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), the Commerce office handling the 232 steel tariff exclusion requests, recently denied requests from California Steel Industries (CSI), Allegheny Technologies, Inc. (ATI) and Novolipetsk Steel (NLMK). As users of semifinished steel, […]
Canada will keep safeguard tariffs on imports of heavy plate and stainless steel wire—only two products of the original seven provisional safeguards implemented in October. In April, the Canadian International Trade Tribunal found that imports of hot-rolled steel, pre-painted steel, energy tubular products, rebar and wire rod did not pose a threat of “serious injury” […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: The lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Section 232 took an interesting turn earlier this week, with plaintiffs’ petition for immediate Supreme Court review of the case, without passing through the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Ordinarily, […]
Steel interests in North America and the rest of the world are watching intently to see if the Trump administration grants some tariff relief to Canada and Mexico to clear the way for final approval of the new U.S.-Canada-Mexico Trade Agreement. One possible compromise being discussed (albeit one so far opposed by the U.S. trading […]
Editor’s note: The following analysis by Alex Lawson of Law 360 describes the American Institute for International Steel’s position on its filing Monday with the U.S. Supreme Court. The legal push to strike down the Cold War-era law used by President Donald Trump to set tariffs on national security grounds unexpectedly shifted to the U.S. […]
Trade attorney and Steel Market Update contributor Lewis Leibowitz offers the following update on events in Washington: On April 5, the WTO issued a long-awaited Panel decision in a dispute settlement case between Russia and Ukraine. Ukraine complained that Russia interfered with Ukrainian trade flows by restricting the routes that goods could travel. Russia argued […]
The World Trade Organization ruled during a dispute settlement between the Ukraine and Russia that trade restrictions imposed on the grounds of national security are reviewable by the WTO–a decision that could have ramifications for the use of national security measures under Section 232 in the United States. The ruling states that the provision for […]
The Trump administration is threatening to impose tariffs of up to 100 percent on goods imported from the European Union as early as this summer in a long-running dispute over aircraft subsidies. A preliminary list of goods that could be affected covers every major product group. Deadline for comments on the list is May 28. […]
A long-term feud between Boeing in the U.S. and Airbus in Europe is coming to a head. Tuesday the U.S. threatened to impose $11.2 billion of retaliatory tariffs on European goods in response to the continued subsidization of the Airbus manufacturer. “This case has been in litigation for 14 years, and the time has come […]
The American Institute for International Steel has appealed its case against President Trump’s Section 232 tariffs to the U.S. Court of Appeals. “This appeal is an important element of our overall legal strategy. As we noted when we started this journey nine months ago, we strongly believe that in the end this matter will be […]
The U.S. International Trade Commission announced its final antidumping and countervailing duty injury determinations in the investigations concerning imports of large-diameter welded pipe from Canada, Greece, Korea and Turkey. Commerce will issue: antidumping duty orders on imports of LDW carbon and alloy steel line pipe from Canada, Greece, Korea, and Turkey; a countervailing duty order […]
The Canadian International Trade Tribunal recommended on Wednesday that five of seven provisional steel safeguards, imposed by the government following the imposition of Section 232 tariffs by the U.S., be removed. A CITT inquiry concerning the importation into Canada of heavy plate, concrete reinforcing bar, energy tubular products, hot-rolled sheet, pre-painted steel, stainless steel wire, […]
March 23 marked the one-year anniversary of the Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum. The Coalition of American Metal Manufacturers and Users had the following comments for the Trump Administration: “The Coalition of American Metal Manufacturers and Users urges the Trump Administration to terminate the Section 232 steel and aluminum tariffs. At their one-year […]
Much attention has been given to opponents of the Section 232 tariffs, but there are those who support keeping the tariffs even after a new North American trade agreement is approved. The American Line Pipe Producers Association, makers of large-diameter welded pipe, urged the administration to continue the tariffs on LDWP imports from Canada and […]
Steel markets are facing “considerable downside risk” as excess capacity continues to a be a major challenge for the global steel industry. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) found that global steelmaking capacity (in nominal crude terms) was nearly unchanged in 2018 at 2.234 billion metric tons, after declining in the previous two […]
The U.S. Court of International Trade ruled against a legal challenge to the constitutionality of Section 232 brought by the American Institute for International Steel. AIIS alleged that Section 232 violates the constitutional prohibition against Congress delegating its legislative powers to the president. The CIT denied a motion by AIIS for a summary judgment, citing […]
The decision by the U.S. Court of International Trade to deny the American Institute for International Steel’s motion for summary judgment on its constitutional challenge to Section 232 has not deterred AIIS from further action. Said AIIS President Richard Chriss: “We are heartened that the Court of International Trade recognized that Section 232, in the […]
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 […]