US import HDG prices stable; prices still up substantially year-over-year

Earlier today, shares of US-based heavy equipment manufacturer Caterpillar dropped by nearly 7 percent after the company indicated that production costs were rising due to Section 232 tariffs. The impact of the tariffs for Q3 material costs, they said, was about $40 million.

“Everything today costs more,” a source said. “Domestic, import, it’s not surprising that large manufacturers like Ford are announcing layoffs and others, like Harley Davidson, are moving production overseas because they’re trying to avoid the retaliatory tariffs that have been levied by the EU.”

Even if US import HDG prices come down, sources note, the cost to buy is still substantially higher than it was during the same reporting period last year. The higher prices haven’t necessarily impacted order activity, they’ve said, since prices are still lower than what they can get from domestic producers, but buyers continue to report they are “in no way happy with the current state of events.”