When Trump visited Scotland in July, he said a reduction in his tariffs on U.K. steel and aluminum would come “pretty soon.”
But five months after the May deal was signed, the U.K. is still lobbying U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to get the White House to put those quotas in place.
“The longer this goes on, the more uncertain it is, the more damaging it is, the less likely we are going to get growth, and the more threat there is to the jobs that are associated,” said Chris Southworth, head of the International Chamber of Commerce UK.
There is “a great opportunity” to conclude the steel talks on the fringes of the state visit, Southworth added. “We need a solution quickly.”
Melt and pour rules
The U.S. has strict rules on imports of steel and aluminum, meaning the metals must be melted and poured in their country of origin to qualify for tariff relief.
But the requirements have been a tall order for Britain’s steel sector after its largest exporter to the U.S. — Tata Steel UK’s Port Talbot steel mill — shut last September.