Trump Raises Tariff Wall...US Steel Industry M&A Heats Up

Analysis has emerged that the import steel tariff measures implemented by US President Donald Trump will accelerate mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the US metals industry this year.

Amid Trump Donald, President of the United States, announcing he would impose a 25% reciprocal tariff on all imports from South Korea starting August 1, steel products were piled up at the export storage yard at Pyeongtaek Port in Gyeonggi on the 8th. July 8, 2025. Photo by Kang Jinhyeong

Bloomberg News reported on the 13th that US steelmakers, which have been relieved of the burden of competing with cheap imports thanks to the latest tariff measures, are enjoying an unprecedented boom. As demand has shifted from imported to US-made steel products, US steelmakers have improved their profitability. They have also been able to secure ample funds for corporate M&A.

Timna Tanners, an analyst at Wells Fargo, said at the CRU Tampa Steel Conference in Florida, "Thanks to the large-scale tariffs, a massive amount of cash is flowing into these companies, and they are now in a position where they must decide how to use this money," adding, "We will see more deals being concluded going forward."

Over the past two years, the steel industry has been actively pursuing M&A. Nippon Steel acquired US Steel, and Cleveland-Cliffs bought Canada’s Stelco Holdings. Subsequently, Steel Dynamics attempted but failed to acquire Australia’s BlueScope Steel. Cleveland-Cliffs is in talks with POSCO Holdings to build a partnership.

Tanners said, "Antitrust regulations are more relaxed than in the past," adding, "The likelihood of deals being blocked by regulators has decreased."

After winning re-election, President Trump raised tariffs on imported steel, declaring that "steel is national security." Last year, under Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act, he increased tariffs on imported steel, aluminum, and related derivative products to 50%. This is seen not merely as a measure to protect a single industry, but as part of a decoupling strategy aimed at fully reshoring and nationalizing the US manufacturing base.