Trump and Steel

With the Trump administration’s pro-defense stance, the U.S. will need of a robust and steady supply of steel to support an increase in defense manufacturing. A major war could cut off our supply of steel from overseas and thereby impact our ability to ramp up the requisite production of armaments. The military’s heavier utilization of domestic sources of steel is arguably the answer to many national security concerns.

National Security Issue

Unsurprisingly, domestic steelmakers argue that the best way to ensure a viable industry is by clamping down on countries that engage in unfair trade practices. In response to these concerns, the administration recently mandated an industry-wide investigation that could lead to the penalization of those behind unfair steel imports.

Section 232 Steel Investigation

The investigation being conducted by the Department of Commerce, (“Section 232”), may soon lead to the further curbing of steel imports with the imposition of tariffs beyond the existing anti-dumping penalties and quotas limiting steel imports. The concern is price increases for our many industries that depend on steel. However, it is believed that progress is being made in finding a sweet spot in which our national security concerns are addressed while consumers’ price concerns are also taken into account.

How We Fit into the Equation

As a custom material handling manufacturer, many of our customers work in the US steel industry. We provide heavy-duty equipment built for large scale projects such as infrastructure development and defense manufacturing. Therefore, the state of steel is something that we pay close attention to.

Let us know what you think about the US steel sector and the Section 232 steel investigations on Twitter. And, to learn more about Hunter Lift, give us a toll-free call at (800) 231-6501 or drop us an email at info@hunterlift.com. Also catch up by connecting with us on LinkedIn.