U.S. Steel, AK Fall Post-Market as U.S., EU to Reassess Tariffs

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Steel and AK Steel Holding dropped in after-market trading as President Trump said he will “resolve” the steel tariffs with the European Union.

• U.S. Steel fell 3.5% to $36.91 at 5:27 p.m. after regular trading in New York, while AK Steel dropped 2.5 percent to $5.09
• Trump, EC President Jean-Claude Juncker reach agreement Wednesday aimed at averting a transatlantic trade war with the
  • So-called Section 232 tariffs on imports into the U.S. have helped boost domestic steel price this year, benefiting American steelmakers
  • The two companies moved lower after the market closed as they’re perceived as the most sensitive to price changes
• “I think that those two companies probably have been more of your 232 plays due to their exposure to pricing,” Phil Gibbs, an analyst at Keybanc Capital Markets in Cleveland, says in phone interview
  • Lowering trade barriers may end up benefiting the steel companies because “people can feel more comfortable that demand growth will continue.”

To contact the reporter on this story: Joe Deaux in New York at jdeaux@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: James Attwood at jattwood3@bloomberg.net, Joe Richter, Will Wade

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