Due to the adoption of anti-competitive strategies, China’s overwhelming manufacturing output has forced many producers out of the world market. namely, U.S. steel and aluminum producers, who are at a size disadvantage due to China’s overcapacity and the devaluation of precious metals. But all that could change after President Biden signs new tariffs on China that could upend manufacturing competition.
Roxanne Brown, International Vice President of the United Steelworkers (USW), joins Editor-in-Chief Brian Sozzi to discuss the pain felt by the nation’s steel mills and communities through China’s encroachment on manufacturing, and the new Talks about the Biden administration’s investments in U.S. industry after overcoming tariffs.
“President Biden really expanded the policy today.” [Sanction] In addition to Tariff 301, the United States also established investment policies to support the future growth of domestic industry, as well as tariffs. We’re not talking about short-term solutions, we’re talking about long-term, multi-generational solutions,” Brown explains.
Brown expects steel prices to “flatten out” as these tariffs bring manufacturing capacity back and confidence returns to the U.S. economy, adding, “That’s what many Americans have heard. I hope that’s the message you are looking for. [the economy] We’re seeing that in many areas where companies want to hire because there’s a lot of work to do. ”
Watch Brian Sozzi’s exclusive interview with President Biden. President Biden talks about what he hopes these new trade tariffs will accomplish.
This post was written by luke carberry morgan.
video transcript
Roxanne.
Oh, I’m so glad you’re here.
Welcome to Yahoo Finance.
Thank you for inviting me.
So lots of new towers, target towers with body management.
Please tell us about the challenges you have faced so far in relation to trade with China.
Well, for us, for our unions, for our stationary unions, this is a very long story, back in the ’80s when we actually had to use the tools of trade to protect domestic industry and jobs. It goes back to
Um, but now we’re in an environment where the president fully understands the industrial policy that he’s put in place across the economy, and he recognizes that tariffs are an important part of that policy.
What has China been doing in the steel sector?
Many people have probably heard that China is dumping steel.
What does that mean exactly?
Basically what that means is that China has been overproducing products in the steel sector for several years now.
Therefore, China has more steel than it can consume.
So what are they doing?
Would you like to share it with the world?
But most of it comes here in the United States and is distributed to the world market at very low prices.
And they can’t fight it because it directly impacts the steel facilities here in the United States and their ability to compete.
What will happen instead is that domestic steel facilities will reduce their production capacity. This means fewer jobs and impacts on the communities surrounding steel facilities.
What will happen to steel prices as a result of these tariffs?
What will happen to it?
I think they’ve leveled things out correctly and are getting to the point where the domestic industry can make a profit. That’s really, really the game.
When it comes to tools like tariffs, it’s important to create space for domestic industry to not only grow, but truly thrive.
And a big part of what the president has done today, especially in the clean technology space, is to create space for these really nascent new areas of the U.S. economy to really grow and develop and the supply chains associated with that. I think it was created. Many of the jobs for steelworkers are there.
What was your experience under the Trump administration?
Because we’ve heard former presidents talk about their journeys, helpers, and friends in the manufacturing industry.
Did you see that?
So what we saw were tariffs on steel and aluminum. Mainly because our union was very vocal about what was going on during the Trump administration.
These two industries are in a truly dire situation and our union, along with other industries, have sincerely begged the government to do something for us.
It doesn’t really matter if there’s an R or an ad that cares about people who care about their members, right?
and the industry in which they work.
Well, President Trump will impose 232 tariffs on imported steel and aluminum.
President Biden today really expanded the 301 tariffs, but on top of that, he also laid out investment policies to support the future growth of domestic industry, not just tariffs.
We’re not talking about short-term solutions.
We’re talking about long-term, generational, long-term solutions to help this economy, this economy, this country, this country’s domestic industry grow.
And that’s what President Biden has done.
President Biden has taken a number of actions. For example, let’s focus on measures to control inflation. But a lot of industrial policy, whether we’re building new chip factories in this country, we need steel in these buildings to build this.
What impact did this administration’s various industrial policies have?
Um, it’s positive, it’s really positive, we’ve seen, uh, increased production capacity at several of our facilities across the country. For our union, it’s actually not just steel.
I like to say that we are the union of all.
As you know, we have critical materials such as mining, paper and glass, and across many sectors we are seeing facilities with increased capacity and increased labor hours.
right.
They work to produce products needed for a clean energy economy.
That is wonderful.
That’s what we want to see.
Do you feel the economy is doing well?
Oh, yeah, yeah, me and me and I, uh, I hope this is a message to a lot of Americans here, and I feel like it’s a strong one and I think it’s a message that companies want to hire. We see this in many fields. It’s a job to be done, right?
And they want jobs, and we’re trying to help them hire the people they need to produce their products domestically.
Finally, we look forward to seeing what the next decade holds for the U.S. steel sector.
Four years ago, I wouldn’t have said that, and I’m saying that primarily because of what happened today, but also because of the bipartisan Infrastructure Act, the Inflation Control Act, and the Chip and Science Act. It is also for the sake of coalition legislation.
This quite literally laid the foundation for the entire U.S. economy for the growth of domestic industry and manufacturing workers.
They will jump into the future.
So, um, we’re looking forward to that promise.
