U.S. Steel restarting second blast furnace – By Len Boselovic (postgazette.com) / June 5 2018
U.S. Steel said Tuesday it will hire about 300 employees as it restarts a second blast furnace at its Granite City, Ill. plant near St. Louis.
The Pittsburgh steel producer said the 25 percent tariffs on steel imports imposed by President Donald Trump were a factor in its decision.
U.S. Steel announced in March that it would restart a Granite City blast furnace based on the increased demand for domestically produced steel it anticipated Mr. Trump’s order would create. The company hired about 500 workers for that project, either calling laid off workers back to the job or hiring new ones. The first blast furnace has yet to be restarted.
The steelmaker said it expects to restart the second blast furnace around Oct. 1.
U.S. Steel shares finished Tuesday at $36.86, down 41 cents. They are up 5 percent this year.
