Kevin Dempsey, president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), released a statement today regarding the global 25 percent tariffs on steel imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, that go into effect today.
While highly controversial, the tariffs were originally introduced by Trump in his first term to bolster domestic production by addressing concerns over longstanding issues of global steel market overcapacity as well as to address national security concerns. The current reinstatement of these tariffs expands the scope and broadens their usage by eliminating previous country exemptions and product exclusions.
“AISI supports President Trump’s actions implementing tariffs on imported steel and eliminating the Section 232 exclusion process that has been exploited as a loophole by foreign producers seeking to avoid tariffs,” Dempsey said. “The comprehensive program of national security tariffs and other measures on steel imports put in place in 2018 allowed the American steel industry to restart idled mills, rehire laid-off workers and begin investing tens of billions of dollars in new and upgraded plants,” he said. “Unfortunately, the effectiveness of those measures has been eroded in recent years and foreign steel overproduction has led to increased dumping of excess foreign steel production onto world markets, as well as widespread trans-shipment and diversion of steel from third countries. AISI applauds the president’s actions to restore the integrity of the tariffs on steel and implement a robust and reinvigorated program to address unfair trade practices. America must have a sustainable, commercially viable steel industry to meet its national security needs.”