Thomas J. Gibson, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), today reaffirmed the Steel Tariff Institute's support and opposition to congressional legislation introduced last week called the “Congressional Bicameral Trade Governance Act” that will lead to premature termination of tariffs.
“ Administration trade actions and tax and regulatory reform policies, in addition to the strong economic climate these politicians have provided, have allowed the American steel industry to begin to recover from more than a decade of low capacity utilization and weaker revenues from - for repeated surges in imports caused by the global surplus of steel "- said Gibson.
Capacity utilization at US steel mills has increased to over 80 percent in recent months, a level not seen in the past 10 years. Some closed mills are reopening, laid-off workers are returning to work, and companies are investing in new steel mills.
" But this recent progress will fade, and our steel industry will again face dire circumstances if tariffs are canceled prematurely ," the AISI chief warned.
The huge surplus steelmaking capacity is still here. Specifically, China produces steel at record levels - over one billion net tonnes in 2018. This means there will be a lot of oversupply in the market.
“ Article 232 trade measures are critical to ensuring that steel remains a vital asset to our national and economic security , Gibson concluded.
