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Released February 11, 2025 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--President Donald Trump on Monday imposed a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports, including those from the U.S.' closest trading partners, Mexico and Canada, according to news accounts.
Trump had first told journalists of his intention to impose the tariffs as he made his way on Air Force One to the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Sunday.
According to data from the American Iron and Steel Institute, 23% of all steel used in the U.S. was imported last year, and the largest sources of imports were Canada, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Vietnam. Aluminum imports are heavily weighted toward Canada, which accounted for 79% of U.S. aluminum imports in the first 11 months of last year. Reuters reports that at 3.2 million tons last year, Canadian aluminum imports to the U.S. were twice as much as those of the next nine countries combined.
In his first term in office, Trump implemented a 25% tariff on imported steel and 10% on aluminum but later granted duty-free quotas to several trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and Brazil. Former president Joe Biden extended these quotas to Britain, the European Union and Japan. Trump has been quicker to announce tariffs in his second term, and after initially threatening Canada and Mexico with 25% tariffs on all goods, granted a 30-day pause as both countries agreed to step up efforts to improve border security, particularly in regard to drugs and illegal immigrants.
Most of the more than $10 billion in active Canadian steel projects being tracked by Industrial Info are set for the future, and the impact that a U.S. tariff would have on their development remains uncertain. Multinational firm ArcelorMittal (NYSE:MT) (Luxembourg, Luxembourg) plans to build a direct reduced iron (DRI) plant and an electric arc furnace (EAF) at its plant in Hamilton, Ontario. Work is expected to begin toward the end of this year, but if a 25% tariff remains in place, the company may opt to prioritize U.S. projects, such as the construction of a non-grain-oriented electrical steel (NOES) mill near its joint-venture plant with Nippon Steel Corporation in Calvert, Alabama. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the reports on the Ontario and Alabama projects.
In regard to Canada's aluminum sector, Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) (London, England), in particular, has more than US$1.8 billion active projects in country that could potentially be affected by a tariff. While many of the company's projects at its smelter in Jonquiere, Quebec, probably are too far along to affect their status or scope, a pilot-scale project that was intended to begin construction this year to showcase carbon-free aluminum smelting cells, producing 2,500 tons per year of aluminum, could be delayed or relocated to another location. Subscribers can click here to learn more about the project.
While Industrial Info is tracking minimal aluminum projects in Mexico, about US$5 billion worth of active steel projects are being tracked in the country, most of which are underway, but including more than US$1 billion with a future planned date and the potential to change in light of U.S.-imposed tariffs. Talleres y Aceros SA de CV (Ixtaczoquitlán, Veracruz), for example, plans to begin on upgrading its casting line at its Ixtaczoquitlán plant this year to produce 1.2 million tons per year of rounds, flats and rebar. Subscribers can click here to learn more.
Significant amounts of Mexican steel and Canadian-sourced aluminum make their way into the U.S. automotive sector, and a tariff could bring higher sticker prices on U.S. car lots. Kelly Blue Book reported that analysts stated a blanket 25% tariff could increase the average vehicle's price in the U.S. by US$3,000, and while a tariff targeting only aluminum and steel would lessen this impact, the two metals make up significant parts of conventional and electric vehicles, and U.S. automobile prices would almost certainly be pushed up.
A threat of retaliatory tariffs to other sectors also looms, although Trump appeared to put the preliminary brakes on such moves from other countries by announcing that he would hold a news conference on Tuesday or Wednesday to provide information on reciprocal tariffs to ensure that "we're treated evenly with other countries."
In a related development, Trump announced that Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) (U.S. Steel) (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), which also was opposed by the Biden administration, was off the table and that Nippon instead would invest heavily in the company. Further details have not been forthcoming since the Friday press conference held with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in which Trump remarked, "They've agreed to invest heavily in U.S. Steel, as opposed to own it." Ishiba confirmed Nippon's plan to invest in rather than acquire U.S. Steel, saying that Japan would provide technology for U.S. Steel to manufacture better quality products in the U.S. "It is not one sided. It will be reciprocal, it will be mutually beneficial," Ishiba said through an interpreter.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Database can click here to view reports for all of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
Trump had first told journalists of his intention to impose the tariffs as he made his way on Air Force One to the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Sunday.
According to data from the American Iron and Steel Institute, 23% of all steel used in the U.S. was imported last year, and the largest sources of imports were Canada, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Vietnam. Aluminum imports are heavily weighted toward Canada, which accounted for 79% of U.S. aluminum imports in the first 11 months of last year. Reuters reports that at 3.2 million tons last year, Canadian aluminum imports to the U.S. were twice as much as those of the next nine countries combined.
In his first term in office, Trump implemented a 25% tariff on imported steel and 10% on aluminum but later granted duty-free quotas to several trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and Brazil. Former president Joe Biden extended these quotas to Britain, the European Union and Japan. Trump has been quicker to announce tariffs in his second term, and after initially threatening Canada and Mexico with 25% tariffs on all goods, granted a 30-day pause as both countries agreed to step up efforts to improve border security, particularly in regard to drugs and illegal immigrants.
Most of the more than $10 billion in active Canadian steel projects being tracked by Industrial Info are set for the future, and the impact that a U.S. tariff would have on their development remains uncertain. Multinational firm ArcelorMittal (NYSE:MT) (Luxembourg, Luxembourg) plans to build a direct reduced iron (DRI) plant and an electric arc furnace (EAF) at its plant in Hamilton, Ontario. Work is expected to begin toward the end of this year, but if a 25% tariff remains in place, the company may opt to prioritize U.S. projects, such as the construction of a non-grain-oriented electrical steel (NOES) mill near its joint-venture plant with Nippon Steel Corporation in Calvert, Alabama. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Project Database can learn more by viewing the reports on the Ontario and Alabama projects.
In regard to Canada's aluminum sector, Rio Tinto (NYSE:RIO) (London, England), in particular, has more than US$1.8 billion active projects in country that could potentially be affected by a tariff. While many of the company's projects at its smelter in Jonquiere, Quebec, probably are too far along to affect their status or scope, a pilot-scale project that was intended to begin construction this year to showcase carbon-free aluminum smelting cells, producing 2,500 tons per year of aluminum, could be delayed or relocated to another location. Subscribers can click here to learn more about the project.
While Industrial Info is tracking minimal aluminum projects in Mexico, about US$5 billion worth of active steel projects are being tracked in the country, most of which are underway, but including more than US$1 billion with a future planned date and the potential to change in light of U.S.-imposed tariffs. Talleres y Aceros SA de CV (Ixtaczoquitlán, Veracruz), for example, plans to begin on upgrading its casting line at its Ixtaczoquitlán plant this year to produce 1.2 million tons per year of rounds, flats and rebar. Subscribers can click here to learn more.
Significant amounts of Mexican steel and Canadian-sourced aluminum make their way into the U.S. automotive sector, and a tariff could bring higher sticker prices on U.S. car lots. Kelly Blue Book reported that analysts stated a blanket 25% tariff could increase the average vehicle's price in the U.S. by US$3,000, and while a tariff targeting only aluminum and steel would lessen this impact, the two metals make up significant parts of conventional and electric vehicles, and U.S. automobile prices would almost certainly be pushed up.
A threat of retaliatory tariffs to other sectors also looms, although Trump appeared to put the preliminary brakes on such moves from other countries by announcing that he would hold a news conference on Tuesday or Wednesday to provide information on reciprocal tariffs to ensure that "we're treated evenly with other countries."
In a related development, Trump announced that Nippon Steel's proposed acquisition of United States Steel Corporation (NYSE:X) (U.S. Steel) (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania), which also was opposed by the Biden administration, was off the table and that Nippon instead would invest heavily in the company. Further details have not been forthcoming since the Friday press conference held with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in which Trump remarked, "They've agreed to invest heavily in U.S. Steel, as opposed to own it." Ishiba confirmed Nippon's plan to invest in rather than acquire U.S. Steel, saying that Japan would provide technology for U.S. Steel to manufacture better quality products in the U.S. "It is not one sided. It will be reciprocal, it will be mutually beneficial," Ishiba said through an interpreter.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Database can click here to view reports for all of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
