1 June 2018

And that is a huge problem, as America is not even able to feed its own demand for those products.

“The largest importers of steel into America are U.S. steel companies,” – says a New York-based steel analyst Chuck Bradford.

The reason is that some of the largest U.S. steel mills are about 80 years old and they can’t actually make specific types of steel that are used in high-grade technology and aerospace products. U.S. mills tend to import the so-called semi-finished steel from Canada, Brazil, and Mexico and then make them finished for further reselling.

The U.S. is not capable of filling its own need for steel and aluminum. It takes several years to get the necessary permission and build steel mills.

“You can’t just turn them on and off by pushing a button,” – Warrian said.

Later, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada would introduce $16.6 billion in tariffs in response to the U.S. actions, starting Canada Day.

They will concern numerous products: from sheets of steel and aluminum to pizza and beer kegs.