Pittsburgh rally marks dramatic policy shift amid national security scrutiny and global trade tensions
President Donald Trump has announced a sweeping increase in US tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, doubling rates from 25% to 50% starting 4 June, in a bid to bolster the domestic steel industry and support a planned merger between US Steel and Japan’s Nippon Steel.
Speaking at the Mon Valley Works Irvin Plant in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania on Friday, Trump said the new duties would “further secure the steel industry,” claiming that foreign competitors “can no longer get over the fence” at a 50% rate. “If you don’t have steel, you don’t have a country,” he said, linking the move to national security and US manufacturing resilience.
The tariff announcement comes alongside Trump’s reversal on Nippon’s proposed acquisition of US Steel. Initially opposed by both Trump and his predecessor Joe Biden, the deal is now being repackaged as a “partnership” — one the administration says will maintain American control.
According to Pennsylvania Senator Dave McCormick, the US government will hold a “golden share” granting it veto rights over certain board appointments. US Steel will retain a US-based CEO and majority-American board, and its headquarters will remain in Pittsburgh. Trump claimed there would be “no layoffs,” and that all blast furnaces would run at full capacity for at least a decade.
US Steel itself has continued to describe the deal as a “merger,” stating in an SEC filing that it will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Nippon Steel North America. Sources familiar with the agreement suggest it still reflects Nippon’s original US$55 per share acquisition offer, though a new investment commitment of US$14bn has been attached — including US$2.2bn for Mon Valley and US$7bn earmarked for facilities in Indiana, Minnesota, Alabama and Arkansas.
The United Steelworkers union remains cautious, noting it has seen “no meaningful change” in Nippon’s ownership ambitions and raising concerns about compliance with union contracts. Meanwhile, Australia’s Trade Minister Don Farrell called the tariffs “unjustified and not the act of a friend,” warning they could distort trade and harm Australian exports.
The tariff hike follows a volatile week in trade policy: a federal court initially blocked Trump’s reciprocal tariffs regime as unlawful, before an appeals court paused that ruling. Trump also accused China of breaching a recent tariff truce, raising the possibility of further trade actions.
Steel shares rallied on the announcement, with Cleveland-Cliffs up more than 15% in after-hours trading, and Nucor and Steel Dynamics also gaining.
Despite the celebratory tone at the event — where Trump received a Pittsburgh Steelers jersey and a golden hard hat — critical details of the deal, including the full extent of US control and final approval by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), remain unclear.
