US steel industry praises trade deal with EU; Aluminum Association seeks details

The trade agreement between the US and EU that upholds 50% US tariffs on steel and aluminum has been welcomed by the US steel industry, but has raised questions for the aluminum sector, which is calling for a "targeted trade policy" as final details of the deal emerge.

The 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum, which went into effect on June 4, and on copper, which would start on Aug. 1, remain unchanged under the new framework.

The US steel industry cheered the lack of any metals exceptions to the tariffs. The aluminum industry, which is interconnected with Canada, the largest US primary aluminum supplier, however, has called for a more surgical approach to trade policy.

Two dozen countries and the EU bloc had faced an Aug. 1 deadline to reach deals with the US. After that time, they faced tariffs of up to 30% on all goods shipped into the US. The Trump administration has reached agreements-in-principle with other countries, including Japan and Vietnam, but the White House has only finalized one, with the UK, and details on the other agreements remain scant.

While the EU and US may have differing views on what is in the "cooperation agreement" that removes tariffs on US industrial goods exported to the EU and sets a rate of 15% including for autos and auto parts, both sides cheered their victory in avoiding a protracted trade war.

The White House has yet to release the final text of the US-EU agreement.

Steel applauds 50% metals tariffs in EU agreement

The Steel Manufacturers Association, a US steel producers trade group, applauded the agreement for maintaining the 50% steel and aluminum tariffs.

"We're very glad to see the administration reach an agreement on the reciprocal tariffs before the deadline, but as far as we know the 50% steel tariffs are still in place as they should be," SMA President Philip Bell told Platts, a part of S&P Global Energy, on July 28.

While the details of the agreement have yet to be made public, Bell stressed the real issue is dealing with excess steel capacity and unfairly traded imports as a whole.

"That's why one of the reasons the 50% tariff is so important is it's going to motivate our trading partners to get serious about their trading relationship with the US and how they handle excess steel capacity and then also steel imports from other countries," he said.

The American Iron and Steel Institute July 28 also welcomed the agreement and praised President Donald Trump for his "commitment to a strong and competitive American steel industry."

"We look forward to continuing to work closely with the president and his administration to address the trade challenges facing the American steel industry, which remains the backbone of the entire manufacturing sector of our economy," AISI President and CEO Kevin Dempsey said in a statement.

The US imported $8.7 billion worth of iron or steel articles from the EU in 2024, according to Energy data.

Aluminum seeks 'targeted trade policy'

In response to the US-EU agreement, the Aluminum Association,representing US aluminum producers, called for a "targeted trade policy" to support US investments and keep unfairly subsidized metal out of American markets.

"A 50% across-the-board tariff risks decreasing demand and harming the industry's ability to serve the defense industrial base," President and CEOCharles Johnson said in a June 28 statement. "We look forward to seeing final details of the trade agreement with the European Union."

The US imports a smaller amount of aluminum from countries in the EU, importing around $2.8 billion worth of aluminum from the union in 2024 compared to $11.6 billion from Canada, the top exporter of aluminum to the US.

Uncertainty around agreement's details

Following the announcement of the agreement, there appear to be some discrepancies between the EU and the US regarding the steel and aluminum tariffs.

EU President Ursula von der Leyen alluded in a statement to establishing a quota system for the metals.

"We will work together to ensure fair global competition," she said in a July 26 statement announcing a deal with the US. "And to reduce barriers between us, tariffs will be cut. And a quota system will be put in place."

European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic stressed in a July 27 statement that "non-market overcapacity is equally destroying the EU steel industry."

"That is why the agreement sees clear prospects of joint action on steel, aluminum, copper and their derivatives in what I like to call 'a metals alliance' – effectively creating a joint ringfence around our respective economies through tariff rate quotas at historic levels with preferential treatment," he said.

The White House has not released any details on a metals quota or a metals alliance.

A White House fact sheet says the EU will work with the US to "eliminate tariffs in various sectors and will provide meaningful quotas for other products, which when combined will create commercially meaningful market access opportunities for a significant amount of U.S. goods exports to the European Union."