The government of the United States founded a Surveillance system for its imports of steel from Mexico and Canada.
According to a U.S. Congressional analysis, U.S. domestic steel production was estimated at 82 million tons in 2022; 10% of production was exported, and more than 90% was shipped to Canada and Mexico.
U.S. imports totaled 28 million tons, 39% of which came from Canada and Mexico
Of the total of these purchases last year, 22% came from Canada, 17% from Mexico and 9% from South Korea8% in Brazil4% in Japan, and the rest from other nations.
The Treaty between Mexico, the United States, and Canada (T-MEC) allows the free movement of steel products between the three countries, another indicator of the strong integration of the North American market.
U.S. tariffs and/or quotas limit imports from all of these and many other countries.
Steel imports
According to estimates by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), imports accounted for 14% of U.S. steel consumption in 2022, compared to 13% in 2021.
In Proclamation 9705 of March 8, 2018 (adjusting steel imports into the United States) and Proclamation 9704 of March 8, 2018 (adjusting aluminum imports into the United States), the President agreed with the conclusions of the Secretary of Commerce on national security.
Therefore, the President decided to adjust the imports of steel and aluminum articles by imposing an ad valorem tariff of 25% on the imports of steel articles and an ad valorem tariff of 10% on the imports of aluminum articles so that these imports do not threaten to harm the national security of the United States.
In the proclamations, the President stated that, in his view, the measures reached with Canada and Mexico will provide an effective, long-term alternative means of countering any contributions by imports of steel and aluminum goods from Canada and Mexico to the threat of undermining the national security of the United States.
