Steel Industry Welcomes New North American Trade Pact

In stark contrast to the mostly bad news related to the coronavirus pandemic, the North American steel industry is celebrating the new USMCA trade agreement that took effect last week.

“Entry into force of the USMCA represents a significant achievement by the United States, Canada and Mexico that will benefit the North American steel industry and its customers throughout the region,” said Kevin Dempsey, interim president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). “For U.S. producers of steel, Canada and Mexico are our two most important export markets, together accounting for nearly 90 percent of all U.S. steel mill exports. By incentivizing the use of North American steel through its enhanced rules of origin, this agreement will help keep manufacturing supply chains strong for goods made primarily from steel. And the USMCA will promote increased cooperation among the three North American governments to address unfair trade practices such as transshipment and the circumvention and evasion of trade remedy orders.”