News

Steel tariffs could impact lobster traps, industry

Costs from retaliatory tariffs on steel and aluminum, could trickle down to Maine’s lobstermen. However, a Massachusetts mesh wire company says they have not increased prices to ‘support’ the lobster industry.

“The effects of the tariffs have been narrow, but have been deep,” said Wade Merritt, the C.E.O. of the Maine International Trade Center. “It’s a bit of a canary in the coal mine for the rest the state’s economy, right? We are starting to see the impacts in different ways, whether it’s manufacturers using steel and aluminum, but also the fact that the lobster industry really underpins a lot of Maine’s rural and also some urban communities.”

Watch full story on News Center Maine