The US Department of Commerce (DOC) has announced that it has submitted to President Trump the results of its investigation into the effect of steel mill product imports on US national security. After this submission, by law the President has 90 days to decide on any potential action based on the findings of the investigation. The DOC has declined to reveal the details of its recommendations for the time being.
After the President’s decision is announced, the DOC will publish a summary of the report in the Federal Register and make the report available to the public after removing any business confidential or classified material.
Reuters quoted Philip Bell, president of the Steel Manufacturers Association, as saying, “Although the report is not yet public, we believe that the investigation findings will confirm what domestic steelmakers already know. Imports of certain steel products to the United States should be restricted on national security grounds.”
The Section 232 investigation was launched in April 2017 with an initial deadline of the end of June. However, the announcement of the results were first postponed until after the G20 summit in July and later until after issues of greater priority such as healthcare and taxes were resolved.