US President Donald Trump on Friday told Pennsylvania steelworkers he is doubling the tariff on steel imports to 50% to protect their industry, a dramatic increase that could further push up prices for a metal used to make housing, autos and other goods.
In a post later on his Truth Social platform, he added that aluminium tariffs would also be doubled to 50%. He said both tariff hikes would go into effect Wednesday, reports AP.
At the US Steel’s Mon Valley Works–Irvin Plant in suburban Pittsburgh, he also discussed a details-to-come deal under which Japan’s Nippon Steel will invest in the iconic American steelmaker. Trump told reporters that he still has to approve the deal.
Though Trump initially vowed to block the Japanese steelmaker’s bid to buy Pittsburgh-based US Steel, he reversed course and announced an agreement last week for “partial ownership” by Nippon.
It is unclear, though, if the deal his administration helped broker has been finalized or how ownership would be structured. Nippon Steel has never said it is backing off its bid to outright buy and control US Steel as a wholly owned subsidiary, even as it increased the amount of money it promised to invest in US Steel plants and gave guarantees that workers would not be laid off or close plants as it sought federal approval of the acquisition.
As for the tariffs, Trump said doubling the levies on imported steel “will even further secure the steel industry in the US” But such a dramatic increase could push prices even higher.
Steel prices have climbed 16% since Trump became president in mid-January, according to the government’s Producer Price Index.
As of March 2025, steel cost $984 a metric ton in the United States, significantly more than the price in Europe ($690) or China ($392), according to the US Commerce Department. The United States produced about three times as much steel as it imported last year, with Canada, Brazil, Mexico and South Korea being the largest sources of steel imports.
However, the United Steelworkers union remained skeptical.
Unionized steelworkers said there is some split opinion in the ranks over Nippon Steel’s acquisition, but that sentiment has shifted over time as they became more convinced that US Steel would eventually shut down their Pittsburgh-area plants.
No matter the terms, the issue has outsized importance for Trump, who last year repeatedly said he would block the deal and foreign ownership of US Steel, as did former President Joe Biden.
Trump promised during the campaign to make the revitalization of American manufacturing a priority of his second term in office.
He said Sunday he would not approve the deal if US Steel did not remain under US control. He said it will keep its headquarters in Pittsburgh.
In recent days, Trump and other US officials began promoting Nippon Steel’s new commitment to invest $14 billion on top of its $14.9 billion bid, including building a new electric arc furnace steel mill somewhere in the US.