By Joe Stonor
Shares in steelmakers fell after a report said U.S. President Trump is considering scaling back some tariffs on steel and aluminum.
In Europe, Swedish steelmaker Ssab fell 2.5% to 75.50 Swedish kronor in afternoon European trade, while Spanish peer Acerinox dropped 4.9% to trade at 13.05 euros. U.S. steelmakers also fell on the report, with Nucor Corporation sliding 2.6% after falling as much as 5% at market open, while Commercial Metals Company stock fell 1%.
The Trump administration is reviewing products impacted by tariffs on metals, and is planning to exempt some items from the levies, the Financial Times reported, citing sources. Steel imports to the U.S. from Europe are currently subject to a 50% tariff.
Tariffs have helped to keep U.S. steel prices elevated, helping domestic producers and encouraging European companies to continue selling into the market despite tariffs, MEPS International steel analyst Kaye Ayub said.
Ssab and Acerinox's large U.S. production facilities make them more vulnerable to a rollback in tariffs than their European peers, analysts said. Any reduction in tariffs would be aimed at bringing down prices and would hurt steel producers with U.S. production, Berenberg economist Atakan Bakiskan said.
The slide in steel stocks hit companies that have diversified production away from the U.S. too, with Luxembourg-based ArcelorMittal falling 1.2%.
Investors in European steel companies are still navigating the introduction of the European Commission's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, MEPS's Ayub said.
The climate policy will levy charges on high-carbon imports including steel. While the new levies should raise European steel prices, significant uncertainty remains around how the charges will work in practice, Ayub added.
Write to Joe Stonor at josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 13, 2026 10:34 ET (15:34 GMT)
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