Turkey supplies too much steel to the United States - Trump

President Donald Trump defends his sanctions and tariffs on Turkey in the face of criticism that measures to deter Turkey from continuing an expanding military offensive against US-allied Kurds in northern Syria are not warranted.

Trump says his fines, which include sanctions against individual ministers and a 50 percent tariff on Turkish steel exports to the United States, are "the strongest imaginable."
On Tuesday he told the media that “we are very tough on Turkey and many others ... we are asking for a ceasefire, we are imposing the most severe sanctions you can imagine ... including the huge steel tariffs they supply a lot of steel in the US, they make a lot of money shipping steel, they won't make that much money. "

Trade figures contradict Trump's assertion that the measures are a huge economic blow to Turkey. According to US government statistics, Turkish steel exports to the US have fallen sharply in recent years, meaning that higher taxes are likely to have minimal impact on Turkey's economy.
“Only 0.5% of Turkish exports were US steel sales in 2018,” Charlie Robertson, chief global economist at Renaissance Capital, told CNBC. "Turkey will not allow its sovereignty to be undermined by the United States by refusing to buy steel that Turkey can sell elsewhere."

Trump may exaggerate the importance of steel imports from Turkey

Turkey ranks 19th on the list of US steel importers by volume, accounting for 1.1% of all steel purchased by the country this year. Between 2018 and 2019, Turkish steel exports to countries fell by 76%, after falling by 38% from 2017 to 2018.

Much of the fall in the past year was due to temporary 50% steel tariffs issued following the arrest in Turkey of Andrew Brunson, a US pastor accused of involvement in the 2016 Turkish coup attempt. The Trump administration cut tariffs to 25% in May last year.

In the first eight months of this year, Turkey's steel exports to the United States totaled $ 120 million, an almost 20-year low.

The Turkish lira actually rose on Tuesday after tariffs that threatened Trump became less severe than markets expected.

Washington and Ankara are in a tough spot following the Turkish offensive in Syria that began on October 9, just days after Trump announced the withdrawal of American troops in what has been widely criticized as a rejection of America's Kurdish allies. Kurdish militias make up the bulk of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, which have played an important role.