Trump campaigned on the promise of protecting the US steel industry but until now has done little to make good on those promises. The Department of Defense has recommended targeted steel tariffs and a delay in aluminum duties. China has indicated it could retaliate against US steel tariffs by targeting imports of US agricultural commodities such as soybeans, of which America is the largest supplier. Shares of Asian steel producers such as South Korea’s Posco and Nippon Steel fell overnight. “Across many states, the number of jobs adversely affected in these steel-using industries could far exceed any steel jobs saved,” Econofact warned.

Source: The Guardian March 01, 2018 18:22 UTC