Linamar sees higher metals costs as ‘opportunistic’ U.S. companies hike prices

Canadian manufacturing firm Linamar Corp is dealing with higher metals costs as some “opportunistic” American companies take advantage of U.S. steel tariffs on their foreign rivals to raise prices, chief executive Linda Hasenfratz said on Tuesday.

In June, the U.S. Commerce Department said it was investigating recent steel price hikes to determine whether some market participants were “illegitimately profiteering” from 25 percent tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump’s administration on steel imports.

“People are being opportunistic,” Hasenfratz told analysts after Linamar, which makes auto parts and aerial work platforms, among other products, reported quarterly earnings.

“American companies, they know that their competition has 25 percent higher” prices, she said. “They’re the only game in town, they’re jacking the prices up.”

Hasenfratz said Linamar was experiencing higher metal costs in its Skyjack division, which makes products like booms, but said they were not a material amount and the company was working with customers to mitigate the increases.

(Reporting by Allison Lampert, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien).