On May 31, 2017, Whirlpool Corporation filed a petition under Sections 201-202 of the Trade Act of 1974, asking the U.S. International Trade Commission to declare that a surge of large residential washer imports from Samsung and LG was "seriously injuring" American manufacturers. The ITC agreed — unanimously. President Trump signed a proclamation in January 2018 imposing a 20% tariff on the first 1.2 million imported washers per year, jumping to 50% on units above that quota, with an additional 50% on imported parts above 50,000 units. The mechanism is a Section 201 global safeguard: unlike antidumping duties targeting specific countries, it hits every exporting nation simultaneously, giving the domestic petitioner a price umbrella over the entire market.
Washing Machine Wars: How Whirlpool Lobbied Washington Into a Price Umbrella
WHR was the named petitioner in the 2018 Section 201 washer tariffs — a masterclass in using trade law to force foreign rivals to build American factories and hand you a pricing floor.
The tariff bought time; it did not buy competitiveness. The employment gains under the safeguard accrued largely to Samsung and LG's new U.S. factories — not to Whirlpool.
Who cashes in:
WHR (Whirlpool) was the architect of this trade action and the primary beneficiary. With Samsung and LG suddenly facing tariff walls of 50% on excess imports, Whirlpool could raise prices without surrendering shelf space. The company publicly cited the tariffs when it announced expanded investment in its Clyde, Ohio plant — a facility that employs more than 3,000 people and funds roughly two-thirds of the city's tax base. Whirlpool's profits rose immediately after the tariffs took effect.
NUE (Nucor) and STLD (Steel Dynamics) caught an indirect tailwind. Samsung and LG's tariff-jumping response — each spending $350-360 million to open factories in Newberry, South Carolina and Clarksville, Tennessee — created demand for domestically produced flat-rolled steel. Every washer tub, drum, and cabinet panel stamped in a U.S. factory needs U.S. steel, and the Section 232 steel tariffs running concurrently meant foreign supply was constrained. Nucor and Steel Dynamics both reported record average selling prices in 2018, with Steel Dynamics' per-ton price jumping 27% year over year.
CLF (Cleveland-Cliffs), as the dominant supplier of flat-rolled steel to North American appliance manufacturers, benefits when foreign-brand assembly moves onshore. Cliffs supplies the very sheet steel that goes into appliance casings; each new U.S. washer plant is a captive demand node.
Who is exposed:
WHR (Whirlpool) — second-order risk. The tariff umbrella was never permanent. The three-year safeguard expired in 2021, and a subsequent ITC review found a troubling outcome: the employment and capacity gains under the tariff accrued largely to Samsung and LG's new U.S. factories, not to Whirlpool. The company that engineered the policy lost market share to the rivals it forced onshore. The tariff bought time; it did not buy competitiveness.
NKE (Nike) illustrates a collateral exposure common across consumer goods. Tariff regimes that raise input costs on finished goods — or invite retaliatory tariffs from South Korea and other trading partners — compress margins for brands with complex global supply chains. Nike sources from dozens of countries; any escalation in the trade framework surrounding Section 201/232 actions raises landed costs and complicates duty drawback strategies.
What to watch: The Section 201 washer case is the template for every domestic manufacturer considering a trade petition. Watch for ITC injury investigations in other appliance categories, HVAC equipment, and electric vehicle components — sectors where a single large domestic player can credibly claim "serious injury" from import surges. When a petition lands, the winners are almost always the domestic steel and parts suppliers who feed the factories the tariff forces into existence on U.S. soil. The losing bet is assuming the petitioner's equity reflects permanent shelter; Washington giveth and the WTO dispute process taketh away.
Source: original report ↗
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