Steel or No Steel

Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, the steel industry has been a huge part of the UK's economy. Despite the blue collar nature of them, many people kept steel-industry jobs for their entire lives and in turn the Steel Companies have become family businesses of sorts. This export has been a key piece to the steadiness and success of this economy, but now the industry as a whole is in jeopardy. Since 2000, there has been a rapid incline of Chinese produced steel. The Chinese steel production is cheaper and faster than its UK counterparts and anyone else across the world.

Lookee here.

While reading an article about the steel situation, the risk of good intentions came into my mind. As many as 40,000 jobs are on the line at the moment, a huge portion of that being from the Tata Steel Company in the UK. Things have gotten so desperate that Britain's foreign secretary is practically begging China to cut back on its production. The thing is, I think that there is hardly any chance that this will happen. China's steel production has become a behemoth in terms of producing and exporting steel. Additionally, since China's economy has been struggling lately, I highly doubt that they would be willing to cut back on production purely for the sake of Britain. Although I hate to say it (because, you know 40,000 people have their jobs on the line) but I don't blame China if that is what was ultimately decided. The Chinese Steel Companies figured out a way to win the international market over with cheap prices and technically won "fair and square". However, this does not make this situation any less tragic.

Port Talbot, Wales.

Port Talbot, a small, steel-dependent town in Southern Wales, is likely going to be hit extremely hard. A working-class town with less than 40,000, the town's very existence seemingly hinges on its steel mill's success. The Original Port Talbot Mill was built in 1901, and in 1961 it closed. But soon after, another steel company purchased it. Eventually this was absorbed by Tata Steel Company (an Indian company), all the while preventing the town from suffering a crushing blow of losing the industry altogether. But this time has been different. The bleakness of the situation is intensified due to the UK's recent decline in steel production, and the likelihood of a heroic purchase from an outsider company is slim.