Cleveland-Cliffs reported its strongest quarterly profit in three years on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, and the steelmaker's chief executive gave much of the credit to the Trump administration's trade enforcement, which he said has revived American steel production and pricing.
The Ohio-based company, which employs roughly 25,000 workers across major industrial communities in the United States and supplies steel to manufacturers and farmers nationwide, posted third-quarter adjusted EBITDA of $612 million, more than double the $286 million from the second quarter, according to the earnings call transcript published by The Motley Fool.
Trade Enforcement Driving the Recovery
Chairman and CEO Lourenco Goncalves did not mince words about what he sees as the cause of the turnaround.
One thing that has become very clear over the past year is that a healthy domestic steel industry happens when trade laws are enforced and when foreign producers are no longer allowed to dump steel into our markets without consequences, Goncalves said on the call.
He praised the Trump administration directly, saying its trade policies are creating the conditions for companies like Cleveland-Cliffs to keep investing in American communities.
What the Trump administration has done on trade is not just good for Cleveland-Cliffs, it is good for America, Goncalves said.
Imports now run about 35% to 40% below the levels that existed before the Section 232 national security steel tariffs of 50% took effect, according to the company. Goncalves said the United States is now the third largest steel producer in the world, ahead of Japan, and he credited President Trump, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamison Greer by name for finally hearing what the industry has been claiming for decades.
What the Numbers Show
Revenue rose to $5.6 billion from $5.2 billion in the prior quarter, driven by higher shipments and selling prices. Steel shipments reached 4.2 million net tons, up from 4 million in the second quarter, and the average net selling price climbed $53 per ton to $1,177 per net ton.
The company reported GAAP net income of $165 million, or $0.26 per diluted share, compared with an adjusted net loss in the previous quarter. Unit costs fell $17 per net ton, beating the company's own guidance, which management attributed to running its mills at the highest utilization rates in several years.
Celso Goncalves Jr., president and chief financial officer, said the company expects about $715 million in adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter and more than $4 billion for full-year 2027, which would be the company's best year since its record-setting 2021.
Looking ahead to 2027, under prevailing market conditions, we could realistically reach an average of more than $1 billion of adjusted EBITDA per quarter in 2027, the younger Goncalves said, according to Benzinga's