The state of Louisiana is highly concerned about the economic impact of trade barriers, which are still being considered by the Trump administration.
Any action to limit the steel trade would come at a cost to the Port of New Orleans, which handled almost 2.3 million tons of imported iron and steel in 2016, ranking it third among US ports. To caution, officials at the Port of New Orleans point to Bush's actions more than a decade ago which resulted in local ports decreasing 46 percent in steel imports which resulted in a loss of more than $1.6 million in revenue.
In 2016, steel accounted for 35 percent of the port's cargo-related revenue. Robert Landry, the port's vice president of commercial operations states that whether tariffs, quotas or both are sought by the Trump administration, "they all have the same impact of not only increasing prices but also lowering shipments into the port." An additional consideration, is that sending fewer barges with steel upriver for northern customers will in turn raise transportation costs for agricultural and other commodities that need to move downriver on those same barges.