Trump Wants to Protect US Industry. Here’s Why He Shouldn’t Be Concerned About Steel Imports.

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross was expected to conclude an investigation this week into whether steel imports pose a national security threat to the United States.

The report has the potential to send major shockwaves not only across the U.S., but around the world.

The investigation stems from the administration’s general suspicion of imports, which it often sees as a threat to domestic industry. But in reality, efforts to insulate the domestic steel industry from competition would only pose unnecessary costs to average Americans.

The administration expedited the investigation process—which normally takes 270 days—to be completed in roughly two months, raising questions about how transparent and wide-scale the investigation is.

Additionally, according to World Trade Online, the Commerce Department “is facing pushback from several government agencies,” including the Department of Defense, indicating that steel imports are in fact not a national security threat.

>>> Read the full report: “Steel Imports Do Not Threaten National Security”

In order to restrict steel imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, it must be shown that the imports are a threat to U.S. national security.

The administration has pointed to China as the unfair actor in the global steel market. But interestingly, China is not even one of our top 10 sources for steel imports.

By contrast, Canada—one of our biggest allies—is actually our biggest steel provider.

U.S. allies are threatening to fight back if President Donald Trump imposes harsh restrictions on steel imports, perhaps by targeting U.S. agricultural exports.

According to Shawn Donnan, “[EU officials] also say they would likely take Washington to the World Trade Organization where such a case would test a national security exemption in global trading rules that has never faced a major challenge before.”

An escalation of that sort would help nobody.

The fact is that tariffs on steel would increase costs for U.S. manufacturing industries, while making little or no contribution to U.S. national security.

The administration should reject the imposition of tariffs on steel through Section 232, and instead encourage greater competition and innovation in the steel industry.