They had been on edge for days, and early Monday morning, Washington confirmed their fears. The metal giants have joined the list of victims of Donald Trump's tariff crusade, who yesterday announced 25% barriers on foreign steel and aluminum, this time also targeting European products. Spain alone exports 250,000 tons of steel to the United States each year, translating into nearly 520 million in annual revenue. However, giants like Acerinox, ArcelorMittal, Tubos Reunidos, or Tubacex greeted the news surprisingly calmly, even in cases where the White House's setback resulted in stock market declines. The key? Over five years of investment efforts to deploy dozens of factories made in America.
Spanish steel giants have been deploying a strong shield against U.S. protectionism since 2018. It was then when Trump, during his first term, approved tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum, impacting European exports worth 6.4 billion euros, according to the sector association UNESID. Since then, the European Union and Washington have engaged in a back-and-forth that, while imposing certain trade barriers, also agreed on a quota policy, meaning volumes of European products that could be marketed in the U.S. without incurring this additional cost. The latest bilateral agreement extended this framework until the end of 2025. This uncertain situation explains why Spanish steel companies have dedicated a significant portion of their investment efforts to building a network of factories in the North American country. In just the past year, investments in the U.S. have exceeded 2,000 million.
The group Acerinox, a member of the Ibex 35, is the global leader in stainless steel and high-performance alloys. It has gradually built six plants in the U.S. (Kentucky, New Jersey, Nevada, Indiana, Louisiana, and North Carolina), and plans to mobilize 444 million dollars over the next four years to expand its industrial capacities in the country. More than half of this amount is intended to increase sales by 20% in the American territory of its local division (NAS, North American Stainless), which already employs 1,606 people.
In addition to this investment effort, there is the acquisition, completed in November 2024, of Haynes, a U.S. company that also manufactures technologically advanced alloys, an operation to which the company led by Bernardo Velázquez Herreros allocated more than 740 million euros. "Arcerinox, in every respect, is American", stated analysts at Renta4 yesterday, highlighting that in the U.S., the steelmaker exclusively works with local materials. This strategic advantage explains why yesterday, amidst the tariff tsunami, the company closed with a 3.76% increase in the stock market.
Another example of the Americanization of Spanish steel companies is Tubacex, which, despite being established in the town of Llodio in Álava for over 60 years, has managed to be perceived by the U.S. market as "an American company with a Spanish owner", according to financial sources. They have two plants there, one of which is dedicated to supplying the Defense industry. In their case, the market currently dismisses significant impacts, as the commercial activity of these factories is primarily focused on the Middle East.
As if foreseeing the future, in December 2023, their CEO, Jesus Esmorís, boasted in an interview with this media outlet about the shield the company had deployed to reduce its exposure to geopolitical pressures like the one the U.S. is currently exerting. The local content, essentially having production capabilities in each of their strategic markets. In the case of the U.S., the group proudly stated that they were one of the few foreign industrialists with local production. "With Trump or without Trump, that is the trend [protectionism], and Biden is also following it," he asserted.
Around half of the revenue of the Alava-based Tubos Reunidos comes from the United States (245 million euros). They have a production center in Houston (Texas) since 2016, and within the IRA incentive program approved by Joe Biden, the company announced in the summer of 2023 an investment of eight million dollars to double its local production capacity to 75,000 tons. Therefore, the group is confident that its "prestigious position" and on-site experience will "minimize the potential impact."
Noteworthy for Spanish exports is ArcelorMittal, one of the most affected stocks at the start of trading this Monday, as it opened with a 2.5% decline. The tariff announcement reminded investors of the sale, in 2020, of the group's American division, which included, among other assets, six steel plants.
The multinational controlled by the Indian business family Mittal never completely left the country, where it still operates several production plants. Since last year, it has been planning the construction of a new electric steel mill in Calvert (Alabama), its most ambitious investment in the U.S., aimed at strengthening its industrial capacities to meet automotive demand. The new facility is expected to start operating in 2027, with an investment of over 866 million to locally produce 150,000 tons of electrical steel annually. The market is aware of this, hence analysts attribute the aforementioned stock market decline to "initial uncertainty." In fact, by the end of the day, the drop in their shares had minimized to 0.62%.
Losers of the tariff war
As demonstrated by the stock markets yesterday, Trump's tariff crusade against European metal will consolidate winners, but also losers. In the latter group will be small and medium-sized enterprises, many of them suppliers to the aforementioned giants, who do not have sufficient financial strength to establish local plants that would give their products the American seal.
The leadership of Asime, the Galician metal industry association, was caught off guard by Washington's announcement while on a trade mission in Miami. The time difference did not prevent their Secretary-General, Enrique Mallón, from issuing a resounding statement warning of the "incalculable consequences" of export barriers. Their 3,500 companies represent 19% of Galicia's GDP. For many of them, production in U.S. territory is not an option.
"The tariff on these alloys could cost Spain nearly 400 million in exports, especially regarding steel," estimated the association, which also predicted negative impacts on the U.S. economy. "They need to import steels that they do not manufacture in their territory, so it would not only affect our industry but also theirs," they warned. While acknowledging that domestic companies will suffer the hardest blow, as they are primarily exporters and have made the U.S. a preferred destination in recent years. "Changing the model is neither easy nor quick and would entail high costs. Therefore, we trust in intense dialogue between the European Union and the United States," Mallón suggested, calling for at least emulating the temporary halt to tariffs achieved by the governments of Mexico and Canada.