Steel and aluminum stocks in the U.S. rallied today despite President Donald Trump not moving forward with some tariffs on imports from Canada. The U.S. President announced the tariffs yesterday after Ontario revealed a 25% surcharge on power provided to Americans. However, Ontario backed down after Trump threatened an additional 25% tariff on steel and aluminum from Canada, which would have increased tariffs on those goods to 50%.
News of the extra metal tariff rallied several U.S. metal stocks yesterday. That rally continued today, though it wasn’t as strong as yesterday’s. It’s worth highlighting that while the 25% extra tariffs on metals aren’t going into effect today, the U.S.’s original 25% tariff still does. That’s one reason U.S. metal stocks are up, despite the additional metal tariff being halted.
What Does This Mean for U.S. Steel and Aluminum Stocks?
The U.S. is a net importer of steel and aluminum, which means local companies in this sector have to compete with foreign rivals. With the new tariffs going into effect today, U.S. manufacturers will be incentivized to source metal from local providers to avoid costly tariffs.
This helps explain why metal stocks are up today as they will likely benefit from President Trump’s tariffs. This makes metal manufacturing one of the few sectors rising in response to the trade war, which has been a disaster for much of the stock market.
U.S. Steel and Aluminum Stocks to Buy
Turning to the TipRanks stock comparison tool, traders can weigh the various U.S. metal stocks before investing. U.S. Steel (X), Nucor (NUE), Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF), and Steel Dynamics (STLD) are all solid steel options with consensus Moderate Buy ratings. Of them, CLF offers the highest upside potential at 47.41%.
Alcoa (AA) and Century Aluminum (CENX) are two U.S. aluminum stocks worth considering, as they both sport consensus Moderate Buy ratings. AA’s upside potential is higher at 42.11% but CENX’s is still strong at 31.79%.
See more U.S. steel and aluminum stock comparisons
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