Trump says he's going to double tariffs on foreign steel

President Trump announces double tariffs on steel

President Trump announced Friday that he is doubling tariffs on steel imports from 25 percent to 50 percent. The announcement came during a rally at a steel plant in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania.

President Donald Trump held a rally on Friday in Pennsylvania to announce that he's doubling the tariff rate on steel to 50%, a dramatic increase that could further push up prices for a metal used to make housing, autos and other goods.

Trump spoke at U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works–Irvin Plant in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, near Pittsburgh to discuss investments by Japan’s Nippon Steel.

The price of steel products has increased roughly 16% since Trump became president, according to the government’s producer price index.

Trump said U.S. Steel will stay an American company under a deal for Japan-based Nippon to invest in the iconic American steelmaker. Few details about the deal have been made public.

What they're saying:

"We’re here today to celebrate a blockbuster agreement that will ensure this storied American company stays an American company," Trump said as he opened an event at one of U.S. Steel's warehouses near Pittsburgh. "You're going to stay an American company, you know that, right?"

Trump said doubling the tariffs on imported steel "will even further secure the steel industry in the U.S." But such a dramatic increase could push prices even higher.

Trump steel deal

Dig deeper:

Trump announced an agreement last week for what he described as "partial ownership" by Nippon. The AP noted that its unknown whether the deal his administration helped broker has been finalized or how ownership would be structured. The news comes after Trump initially pledged to block the Japanese steelmaker’s bid to buy Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel.

State and federal legislators aware of the matter describe a deal in which Nippon will buy U.S. Steel and spend billions on U.S. Steel facilities in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Alabama, Arkansas, and Minnesota. 

RELATED: Trump vows to block Nippon Steel’s $14B takeover of US Steel

According to the AP, the company would be supervised by a board comprised of mostly Americans and protected by the U.S. government’s veto power in the form of a "golden share."

The AP noted that U.S. Steel has not publicly communicated any details of an adjusted deal to investors. Nippon Steel issued a statement approving of the proposed "partnership" but also has not disclosed terms of the arrangement.

RELATED: Trump imposes sweeping steel, aluminum tariffs

Over the weekend, Trump said he wouldn’t approve the deal if U.S. Steel did not remain under U.S. control and said it will keep its headquarters in Pittsburgh.

The AP reported that Trump and other U.S. officials started promoting Nippon Steel’s new commitment to invest $14 billion on top of its $14.9 billion bid, including building a new electric arc furnace steel mill somewhere in the U.S.