Contractor Groups And Trade Unions Oppose U. S. Steel And Aluminum Import Tariffs

Trump administration Commerce Department proposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum might protect metal production workers, but they will have dramatic negative impacts on the domestic construction industry, according to industry leaders. Unites Steelworkers’ Union president Leo W. Gerard notes that while certain countries “have relentlessly violated trade laws,” Canadian steel imports should be excluded from tariffs and quotas.

Associated General Contractors chief economist Ken Simonson says the proposed tariffs are likely to “make infrastructure less affordable, foil efforts to rev up economic growth and imperil the financial health of contractors who have fixed price contracts but have not locked in steel purchase prices … These tariffs would doubtless add double digits to the rates of steel and aluminum price increases.” Associated Builders and Contractors chief economist Anirban Basu says the construction industry “is staring down the barrel of fairly significant increases in materials prices at a time when materials prices are already rising quite rapidly … Now is not the time to wait. Now probably is a good time to lock in prices, because the future has become very uncertain.” Basu notes that the construction industry stands to be among the biggest losers if the proposed steel and aluminum tariffs are approved.