U. S. Steel says the move is directly related to Trump’s plan to levy tariffs steel and aluminum imports.
U. S. Steel said Wednesday that it is preparing to restart its steelmaking facilities and one blast furnace at an Illinois plant as a result of President Trump’s promise to levy tariffs on foreign steel.
If U. S. Steel restarts part of its plant in Granite City, Ill., which has been out of commission for more than two years, the company could hire 500 workers. The company anticipates the restart could take about four months.
White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Wednesday that the administration is on pace to release details of the proposed tariffs by the end of this week. Trump said March 1 he would impose a 25% tariff, or tax, on steel imports and 10% on aluminum.
U. S. Steel president and CEO David Burritt praised Trump’s “strong leadership” on the tariff proposal.
“Our Granite City Works facility and employees, as well as the surrounding community, have suffered too long from the unending waves of unfairly traded steel products that have flooded U. S. markets,” Burritt said. He added that the “action announced by President Trump last week recognizes the significant threat steel imports pose to our national and economic security.”
U. S. Steel idled the Granite City facility’s two blast furnaces and three steelmaking facilities in December 2015. The facility’s hot strip mill was idled in January 2016 –moves that left about 1,500 people out of work.
The company, however, restarted its hot strip mill a little over a year ago to meet customer needs, according to the company.
The proposed move by Trump has disturbed Wall Street, which fears that levying tariffs on steel and aluminum imports could spur a trade war.
The Dow Jones was down about 110 points at 11 a.m.
Gary Cohn, Trump’s chief economic adviser, opposed the tariffs. He announced Tuesday that he was stepping down from his post.
On the campaign trail, Trump promised blue collar voters that he would get tough on the dumping of steel and aluminum in the U. S. market, particularly by China. China has been accused of selling steel and aluminum in the U. S. at prices that are below the cost of production.
Trump dismissed concerns that the tariffs would trigger a trade war. Burritt, the U. S. Steel CEO, has been among the most outspoken in urging Trump to follow through on his campaign pledge.
“Unfair and illegal practices have left the U. S. steel industry too close to the brink,” he wrote in a USA TODAY op-ed earlier this week. “Tens of thousands of jobs have been lost, and thousands more are at risk.”
