Trump tells US steelworkers he will double tariffs on foreign steel to 50%

US President Donald Trump on Friday, 30 May, told Pennsylvania steelworkers he's doubling the tariff on steel imports to 50 per cent to protect their industry, a dramatic increase that could further push up prices for a metal used to make housing, autos and other goods.

In a post later on his Truth Social platform, he added that would also be doubled to 50 per cent, and both tariff hikes would go into effect on Wednesday, 4 June.

Trump spoke at US Steel's Mon Valley Works–Irvin plant in suburban Pittsburgh, where he also discussed a details-to-come deal under which Japan's Nippon Steel will invest in the iconic American steelmaker.

Though Trump initially vowed to block the Japanese steelmaker's bid to buy Pittsburgh-based US Steel, he reversed course and announced an agreement last week for what he described as “partial ownership” by Nippon.

It's unclear, though, if the deal his administration helped broker has been finalised or how ownership would be structured.

“We're here today to celebrate a blockbuster agreement that will ensure this storied American company stays an American company,” Trump said as he opened an event at one of US Steel's warehouses.

“You're going to stay an American company, you know that, right?”

As for the tariffs, Trump said doubling the levies on imported steel “will even further secure the steel industry in the US".

But such a dramatic increase could push prices even higher.

Steel prices have climbed 16 per cent since Trump became president in mid-January, according to the government's Producer Price Index.

As of March 2025, steel cost USD 984 a metric tonne in the United States, significantly more than the price in Europe (USD 690) or China (USD 392), according to the US Commerce Department.

The United States produced about three times more steel than it imported last year, with Canada, Brazil, Mexico and South Korea being the largest sources of steel imports.

Analysts have credited tariffs going back to Trump's first term with helping strengthen the domestic steel industry, something that Nippon Steel wanted to capitalise on in its offer to buy US Steel.

The United Steelworkers union remained skeptical of Nippon's investment.

Its president, David McCall, said in a statement that the union is most concerned “with the impact that this merger of U. Steel into a foreign competitor will have on national security, our members and the communities where we live and work".

Trump stressed the deal would maintain American control of the storied company, which is seen as both a political symbol and an important matter for the country's supply chain, industries like auto manufacturing and national security.

Trump, who has been eager to strike deals and announce new investments in the US since retaking the White House, is also trying to satisfy voters, including blue-collar workers, who elected him as he called to protect US manufacturing.

"We are going to be imposing a 25% increase. We’re gonna bring it from 25% to 50%, the tariffs on steel into the US." - Trump

How long before he chickens out on this too?

Sunday afternoon after his golf round?

pic.twitter.com/IZwhJgnZPn

— Spencer Hakimian (@SpencerHakimian) May 30, 2025

US Steel has not publicly communicated any details of a revamped deal to investors. Nippon Steel, which issued a statement approving of the proposed “partnership”, has also not disclosed terms of the arrangement.

State and federal lawmakers briefed on the matter describe a deal in which Nippon will buy US Steel and spend billions on US Steel facilities in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Alabama, Arkansas and Minnesota.

The company would be overseen by an executive suite and board made up mostly of Americans and protected by the U.S. government's veto power in the form of a “golden share.”

Unionised steelworkers said there is some split opinion in the ranks over Nippon Steel's acquisition, but that sentiment has shifted over time as they became more convinced that US Steel would eventually shut down their Pittsburgh-area plants.

No matter the terms, the issue has outsized importance for Trump, who last year repeatedly said he would block the deal and foreign ownership of US Steel, as did former president Joe Biden.

Trump promised during the campaign to make the revitalisation of American manufacturing a priority of his second term in office.

And the fate of US Steel, once the world's largest corporation, could become a political liability in the midterm elections for his Republican Party in the swing state of Pennsylvania and other battleground states dependent on industrial manufacturing.