Top Steel Producer Nucor Continues To See Healthy Orders Amid Trump Tariff Uncertainty

Nucor (NUE) said on Tuesday that U.S. steel demand remains resilient, despite some customers moving up their orders to bypass import tariffs.

“We continue to see very healthy order entry rates and relatively stable pricing,” CEO Leon Topalian said on a call with analysts.

The company said its steel products order backlog is 25% higher than it was at the same period last year.

“If we look today at what our structural backlog is, it is sitting at the highest levels in our history,” Topalian said.

Nucor, the largest steelmaker in the U.S. in terms of sales, also topped Wall Street’s estimates for first-quarter profit. New energy-related projects were also driving demand, Laxton said.

The company expects its second-quarter earnings to be “meaningfully higher” than in the first quarter.

“While there is potential concern that some of the commercial construction planning may be pausing in response to recent market volatility, larger projects in advanced manufacturing, infrastructure, and institutional construction remain largely unaffected,” Chief Financial Officer Steve Laxton said.

In a separate interview with Jim Cramer at CNBC, Topalian spoke favourably about President Donald Trump’s import tariffs on steel products.

He reportedly said the rules take into account a holistic view of the industry and help ensure “we have a strong, resilient industry for national defense.”

Retail sentiment on Stocktwits was in the ‘neutral’ (52/100) territory compared to ‘extremely high’(79/100) a day ago, while retail chatter remained ‘high.’

Nucor stock has gained marginally year to date (YTD).

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