Trump Appears to be Good for Steel

Among President Trump’s decisions during his first week in office was to move ahead on two major pipeline projects in the United States—and to use American-made steel to get them done.

“I have to tell you that the steel world is ga-ga for Trump,” said Lisa Goldenberg, president of Delaware Steel Company of Pennsylvania, in an interview on America Public Media’s Marketplace.

Goldenberg acknowledged challenges with the new president but said “when it comes to steel, people are pretty darn happy” with Trump.

Prices reflect that optimism. The industry has seen across-the-board increases that have restored prices to levels not seen since June.

Of course, what’s good news for steel can be bad news for the industries who buy it.

“More steel, more manufacturing, more people saying ‘made in America,’ is in general a good thing,” Goldenberg said. “There is a caveat to that, in that the more closed the market is to outsiders, the more prices go up, and we as consumers, so not wearing my steel hat, but we as market consumers are going to pay more.”

The Association intends to take a look at steel prices and their impact on members in future publications.