Will US import HDG tariffs be removed by the new Congress?

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is among US lawmakers calling for an end to Section 232 tariffs on steel imports from Mexico and Canada. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley agrees, noting that retaliatory tariffs on American goods unrelated to steel is causing harm to the businesses and business owners.

Grassley has been very clear in stating that the new Congress will reassert itself and take on more leadership over tariffs. However, it’s not immediately clear how long it will take elected officials to act on that promise.

For now, US import HDG prices continue to be impacted by Section 232, as noted by the year-over-year pricing comparison listed in the below chart.  

“Everything costs more, that’s pretty much the end of the story,” a source said, adding frustration that light gauge HDG coil continues to be impacted, especially in because US mills “are seemingly uninterested in rolling it. All the new [domestic] capacity that’s coming online will be heavy gauge,” he continued.  “It’s still pretty frustrating.”

In terms of current import tonnages, or year-over-year data with regard to how US HDG imports have been impacted, that information is not currently available, as US government websites have been taken offline due to the government shutdown.