Trump to sign order boosting federal purchases of iron, steel

President Trump on Thursday will sign an executive order designed to boost the amount of American steel and iron used in infrastructure projects.

The order directs agency heads to “encourage recipients of new federal financial assistance awards to use, to the greatest extent practical, iron, steel, aluminum, cement and other manufacturing products produced in the United States,” White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told reporters on a conference call.

{mosads}Trump will sign the order, titled “Strengthening Buy American Preferences for Infrastructure Projects,” in the Oval Office at 11:45 a.m.

Navarro said the measure will “reinforce this administration’s ‘Buy American’ preferences” by “providing strong presidential guidance.” But it does not include enforcement mechanisms or specific purchasing targets.

Trump has taken a series of actions designed to bolster the U.S. steel industry, including slapping tariffs on imports from most large steel-producing countries. But critics have said the measures have not created more jobs at U.S. steel plants and that they have hurt industries that use steel products.

Three months after taking office, Trump also signed an executive order that makes it harder for government agencies to acquire waivers to skirt “Buy American” requirements.