Australia’s BlueScope surges on Trump’s plan to double tariffs on steel imports

Shares of Australian steel producer BlueScope Steel jumped on Monday to a more than three-month high after President Donald Trump said he planned to double tariffs on imported steel.

Shares of BlueScope, which operates five businesses in North America including the North Star mill in Ohio, were up as much as 9.4% at A$24.88 in early trade.

The stock was among the top performers in the broader ASX 200 benchmark index, which was down 0.4%.

Trump on Friday said that he planned to double tariffs on imported steel and aluminium to 50%, ratcheting up pressure on global steel producers and deepening his trade war.

These proposed tariffs could bode well for BlueScope in enhancing steel prices in the U.S., thus driving tailwinds for the company, said Grady Wulff, a market analyst at Bell Direct.

In mid-February, the stock rose 12% after the company's chief executive Mark Vassella said that the business could benefit from Trump's protectionist tariffs.

However, shares have slipped nearly 10% since Vassella's statements.

Uncertainty of a rebound in demand from China for steel and steelmaking ingredients has weighed on all companies with exposure to this market, Wulff said, along with tariffs which are increasing uncertainty around the recovery of demand for steel-related materials.

BlueScope has borne the brunt of weak iron ore prices, which have fallen 3.5% so far this year.

North America was BlueScope's biggest revenue-generating segment in the six months to December 31, 2024, accounting for 42%, or A$309 million ($199.77 million), of all underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation. Australia made up 39%, or A$288 million.

($1 = 1.5468 Australian dollars)