Donald Trump’s steel tariff will “seriously undermine” the UK steel industry
Donald Trump’s plan to hike steel tariffs would “seriously undermine” the UK’s ability to compete in the market, the steel industry trade body has said.
Last night, the US President revealed he would impose a 25 per cent levy on steel imports and a 10 per cent tariff on aluminium products to tackle “unfair” trade.
Analysts have warned the move puts the world on the brink of a trade war, and the UK government has previously fought against a US steel tariff over fears it could hamper the country’s already struggling industry.
Britain’s steel industry exports about £360m worth of high-value steel products to the US each year, according to UK Steel, accounting for about 15 per cent of the UK’s steel exports.
Richard Warren, UK Steel’s head of policy, said Trump’s tariff was a “blunt” approach to what is a complex global issue of an oversupplied market.
“Whilst we all too well understand the frustrations of the US sector, measures such as these smack of short-termism, protectionism and would be rife with unintended consequences for global trade and for the users of steel in the US,” Warren said.
Read more: Markets slump after Trump unveils steel and aluminium tariffs
Source: Statista
Warren said the tariffs could also divert cheap steel away from the US to other markets like the UK.
“In short, these measures would cause serious damage to the prospects of many steel producers here,” he said.
“Whilst performed under the guises of national security, whichever way you look at it the UK exports of steel into the US are clearly no threat to US security and pose no threat the health of the US steel sector.
“We are one of its oldest and closest allies. We trust the UK government would push for and fully support a robust response from the EU.”
The details of Trump’s plan are still unclear and an official announcement is set to be made next week.
UK Steel urged the government to be “clear-eyed and equip ourselves with tools to respond effectively and protect our interest when necessary”.