I LIKE STEEL: US Steel Surpasses Japan, Boosted by Trump Tariffs.

For the first time in more than a quarter-century, the United States has muscled past Japan in steel production — a symbolic and economic milestone fueled by President Donald Trump’s aggressive tariff regime and a surging appetite for steel from America’s booming artificial intelligence buildout, Nikkei Asia reports.

U.S. crude steel output climbed 3.1% in 2025 to 82 million tons, according to the World Steel Association, vaulting the U.S. into third place globally behind only China and India.

It marked the first time since 1999 that American mills outproduced Japan, ending decades of relative decline and signaling a dramatic shift in the global steel landscape.

The revival has Trump’s fingerprints all over it.

Indeed.