Canadian steel faces tariffs, layoffs and cheap imports — but industry insiders see a way forward - Toronto Star

Stelco's layoffs and Trump's tariffs are shaking an industry in crisis, but experts say there is a way forward.

Some 500 Stelco workers in Hamilton face layoff by their U.S. owner, but insiders say there are things Ottawa can do. “If you don’t protect your domestic market, we won’t have a domestic industry.” 

With U.S. tariffs, cheap Chinese steel flooding global markets, hundreds of layoffs, and a $15 billion new steel plant planned in Iowa, is there still a future for the Canadian steel industry?

Despite Canada’s reliance on the U.S. for most of its steel exports amid punishing 50 per cent tariffs, experts still see a glimmer of hope for the beleaguered industry — domestically.

This week, parent company Cleveland-Cliffs announced it was idling Stelco’s cold mill and coating lines in Hamilton effective Oct. 9, leaving up to 500 workers facing layoffs. The company cited market conditions — including 50 per cent U.S. tariffs and falling global steel prices — for the indefinite pause.