WCA March 2017

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60 Wire & Cable ASIA – March/April 2017
From the Americas
Mr Brant characterised Moia as one of the most
ambitious of many such undertakings announced by
traditional automakers in 2016. Some other competitors
of ride-share leader Uber are focusing on hourly car
rentals, with BMW expanding its ReachNow service
in several USA cities. General Motors, meanwhile, is
strengthening its partnership with Lyft, in which it has
invested $500 million.
 Speculation about a future of connected vehicles – in
which messaging and other services are made available
on-screen to passengers sitting with their arms folded
– has centred on the driverless car. On 30th November,
Chuck Martin, who writes “IoT Daily” at MediaPost,
reported on a driverless truck: specifically, one which
had just successfully completed a 35-mile test by
driving itself at highway speed on a four-lane divided
road in Ohio. Later in the week, the truck, owned by the
San Francisco-based ride-sharing service Uber, was
scheduled to drive on the Ohio Turnpike.
The maker of the self-driving truck is Otto, a company
acquired by Uber a few months earlier for about $680
million. The tests were announced by Ohio’s governor
John Kasich, a failed candidate for the Republican
nomination for USA president, who characterised the
first set of results as “what the future of transportation
will look like.” A similar test was run in Colorado in
October, with Budweiser shipping a load of beer on a
truck that drove itself for a 120-mile stretch of highway.
These are closely monitored tests, with backup drivers
in the trucks ready to take charge if something goes
wrong. But, observed Mr Martin, “So far, all have gone
as planned.”
Steel
The vocal champion of the USA steel
industry in the White House will now
be expected to make good on some
extravagant promises
“It will be American steel that will fortify America’s crumbling
bridges. It will be American steel that sends our skyscrapers
soaring into the sky. We are going to put American
produced steel back into the backbone of our country.”
These ringing declarations by Donald Trump, quoted by the
Financial Times (London), were made during the run-up to
election day in the USA. As of 20th January, the date of Mr
Trump’s presidential inaugural, he is in a position to start
making good on his pledges. What may the steel industry
expect?
The FT recalls four steel-related commitments made by
Mr Trump, and promptly dismisses two of them as unlikely
to be very helpful: the easing or simplification of federal
regulations; and cutting corporate taxes, which might spur
growth in the economy but would only indirectly – and not
appreciably – benefit some steelmakers.
But the FT considers that two of Mr Trump’s promises
hold definite significance for the steel sector: a huge
investment in infrastructure, and a stiffening of USA curbs
on steel imports. The proposal for a $1 trillion outlay for
the construction and repair of roads, bridges, tunnels, rail
lines and airports would certainly revitalise the domestic
construction industry. The FT suggests that $100 billion
a year in spending could increase USA steel consumption
by six per cent. It notes that, if this were supported by a
vigorously applied Buy America programme, American
producers of steel long products such as rebar especially
stand to benefit.
As to anti-dumping action, blocking imports of low-priced
steel, particularly from China, would tackle the global
problem of overproduction that weighs on the USA and all
steel-producing markets.
Raining on the parade
Reviewing the two policy options selected by the FT, Stuart
Burns of MetalMiner pointed out that, despite widespread
enthusiasm for the infrastructure spending initiative,
Mr Trump can expect resistance from some Republican
leaders in Congress – conservatives uneasy with the
prospect of any large increase in government spending.
Wrote Mr Burns, “[The new president’s] $1 trillion
headline-grabbing figure may well have to be compromised
for the plan to get approval.”
The American market share taken by steel imports rose
from 20.9 per cent in 2010 to 29.1 per cent in 2015. Even
so, Mr Burns observed, a strong anti-dumping push “may
incur opposition through the World Trade Organization that
would slow or limit potential action” by Mr Trump. (“The
Challenges President Trump Will Face Boosting American
Steel,” 5th December)
 It is worth mentioning here that Mr Trump will
perhaps have an unusual advisor – and ally – in any
imports-related initiatives he might launch. Dan DiMicco,
former chairman and CEO of Nucor Corp, the Charlotte,
North Carolina-based steel mini mill, headed Mr Trump’s
transition team. Mr DiMicco was, at this writing, believed
to be the president’s choice for the office of US trade
representative.
 Ironically, noted MetalMiner , Nucor is the American steel
producer that has reacted most effectively to the threat
of steel imports. In the face of intense competition from
imports, Mr Burns wrote, the firm “has invested and
innovated, improving efficiency and reducing the cost of
production such that Nucor, today, is better able to cope
both domestically and internationally than any other
steel producer in the US.”
USA steel-consuming manufacturers warn
against potential ‘devastating impact’ of
high duties on tool steel imports
The US International Trade Commission (ITC) is considering
imposing anti-dumping and countervailing duties on carbon
and alloy steel cut-to-length plate from Austria, Belgium,
Brazil, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, South
Africa, Taiwan and Turkey.