US, Canada, Mexico lift steel, aluminum tariffs pressuring China
The White House and the Commerce Department have made Friday one of the busiest for trade news in recent months.
Early afternoon, the United States and Canada agreed to jointly lift tariffs on steel and aluminum.
In a statement, the two countries said:
"After extensive discussions on trade in steel and aluminum.... the United States and Canada have reached an understanding as follows, the United States and Canada agree to eliminate, no later than two days from the issuance of this statement, all tariffs the United States imposed under Section 232 on imports of aluminum and steel products from Canada. Additionally, "the United States and Canada agree to terminate all pending litigation."
Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau tweeted to the country's industrial workers, "we have your back. We stood firm to support & defend Canada’s steel & aluminum industries, and the workers who power them."
Paul Nathanson, the spokesperson for the Coalition of American Metal Manufacturers and Users (CAMMU), issued the following statement:
"We are also pleased that negotiators listened to U.S. steel and aluminum-using manufacturers and did not replace tariffs with quotas, which are even worse for U.S. companies. This shows that our voices are being heard in Washington, DC.”
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AKS | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
| NUE | NUCOR CORP. | 146.38 | -5.82 | -3.82% |
| X | UNITED STATES STEEL CORP. | 36.37 | -1.41 | -3.73% |
| STLD | STEEL DYNAMICS INC. | 137.81 | -4.09 | -2.88% |
The move came hours after President Trump agreed to delay his decision on slapping tariffs on European, Japanese and other global automakers, by 180 days.
The move may be a strategic one says free-market economist Steve Moore, because it paves the way to step up the pressure on China.
"We need to get USMCA done to isolate China" said Moore who was one of President Trump's picks for two vacancies on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.
Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on USMCA and efforts to streamline the process for improving America's infrastructure.
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Moore reluctantly withdrew his intentions to pursue the Fed role.
“It was very disappointing that this couldn't go forward but you know the fact is that this kind of sleaze campaign over the last three or four weeks was just really too tough for me and my family and you know we just decided it was much better for Donald Trump to select someone who doesn't have a 30-year paper trail,” he told FOX Business’ Neil Cavuto after the news broke.