- FMA
- The Fabricator
- FABTECH
- Canadian Metalworking
Categories
- Additive Manufacturing
- Aluminum Welding
- Arc Welding
- Assembly and Joining
- Automation and Robotics
- Bending and Forming
- Consumables
- Cutting and Weld Prep
- Electric Vehicles
- En Español
- Finishing
- Hydroforming
- Laser Cutting
- Laser Welding
- Machining
- Manufacturing Software
- Materials Handling
- Metals/Materials
- Oxyfuel Cutting
- Plasma Cutting
- Power Tools
- Punching and Other Holemaking
- Roll Forming
- Safety
- Sawing
- Shearing
- Shop Management
- Testing and Measuring
- Tube and Pipe Fabrication
- Tube and Pipe Production
- Waterjet Cutting
Industry Directory
Webcasts
Podcasts
FAB 40
Advertise
Subscribe
Account Login
Search
Mid Continent Steel & Wire welcomes Missouri attorney general amid Section 232 tariff struggles
- August 20, 2018
- News Release
- Metals/Materials
Mid Continent Steel & Wire Inc., Poplar Bluff, Mo., a producer of steel nails that has reduced its workforce substantially because of soaring costs and cancelled sales resulting from the Section 232 tariffs, welcomed Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley to tour its facility on Aug. 17.
The 25 percent tariffs, which took effect June 1, have raised the price of the raw materials U.S. companies use. Mid Continent pointed out that, by contrast, its competitors in such countries as China, Taiwan, Turkey, and India do not face these increased costs, and their nail exports to the U.S. are not covered by Section 232 tariffs.
Mid Continent now employs fewer than 340 workers, down from about 500 before the tariffs took effect. Temporary workers have been let go, and some permanent workers have left for other jobs and have not been replaced.
"Our company is in trouble, but a solution exists," said George Skarich, Mid Continent's executive vice president for sales. "When President Trump announced that he would impose Section 232 tariffs, he recognized the need for certain exclusions and put a process in place that would minimize undue impact on downstream American industries like ours."
Skarich added, "I've got to believe our situation is the very definition of 'undue impact' the president was preparing for. All of our workers and the families they are supporting—we all continue to hope that the president will use that relief valve for us and grant the exclusions we've applied for so that we can save our company and these jobs."
Mid Continent filed 24 applications to exclude the steel wire used to manufacture its nails from the Section 232 tariffs on June 18. Unless the exclusions are granted soon, the company reports it may have to eliminate as many as 200 more jobs and could shut down.
Attorney General Hawley has publicly supported the company's exclusion applications and, through a spokesperson, told the Washington Post that Mid Continent "makes a good case for an exemption and we have spoken to the White House about it."
subscribe now
The Fabricator is North America's leading magazine for the metal forming and fabricating industry. The magazine delivers the news, technical articles, and case histories that enable fabricators to do their jobs more efficiently. The Fabricator has served the industry since 1970.
start your free subscription- Stay connected from anywhere
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Fabricator.
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Welder.
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Tube and Pipe Journal.
Easily access valuable industry resources now with full access to the digital edition of The Fabricator en Español.
- Podcasting
- Podcast:
- The Fabricator Podcast
- Published:
- 05/14/2024
- Running Time:
- 62:12
Cameron Adams of Laser Precision, a contract metal fabricator in the Chicago area, joins the podcast to talk...
- Trending Articles
White House considers China tariff increases on materials
A visit to Automate 2024 reveals the future might be now
Why employee-owned companies make sense in manufacturing
Majestic Steel Arkansas fully operational
Rivian to expand Illinois facility to manufacture midsized SUV
- Industry Events
Laser Welding Certificate Course
- May 7 - August 6, 2024
- Farmington Hills, IL
World-Class Roll Forming Workshop
- June 5 - 6, 2024
- Louisville, KY
Advanced Laser Application Workshop
- June 25 - 27, 2024
- Novi, MI
Precision Press Brake Certificate Course
- July 31 - August 1, 2024
- Elgin,