Trump Strikes Again: New US Tariff Risks Destroying Italian Cutlery!

Time to Act – Trump, Tariffs, Steel and the Future of Italian Cutlery

Do you know what was enough to alarm half of the Italian cutlery sector? A signature.

Yes, you read that right. A simple signature—applied by Donald Trump, US president again starting in 2025—has triggered a domino effect that risks overwhelming exports, raw materials, young workers and the productive heart of districts like Maniago.

The code name is “Liberation Day.” But for those who make knives, steel, or work in manufacturing, it might sound more like a declaration of trade war than liberation.

We talk about duties, strategic steels like CPM MagnaCut, scrap exported abroad and young Italians who flee . But above all, we talk about ourselves : those who work every day in workshops, grinders, polishers and technical sheets to create something that goes far beyond a simple tool. We talk about identity.

This post is not just an analysis. It is an invitation.
To wake up, to understand what is happening and to decide how to react before others do it for us.

Do you have a workshop? Do you produce artisan knives or are you part of the supply chain?
Do you care about Italian manufacturing, the real one, made of iron, fire and future?

So get comfortable.
Because now is the time to act.

In the hyper-connected world of 2025, a signature is enough to shake entire economic sectors.

On April 2, in what he called his new “Liberation Day” , Donald Trump , back in the White House, signed an executive order on customs duties that severely affects many products imported from Europe.

A move that has already had global repercussions, from increased trade tensions with the EU to the immediate collapse of international stock markets.

Among the sectors under pressure is also the Italian artisanal and industrial cutlery sector , which is strongly linked to the United States for exports and supplies of special steels.

🌍 The (real) risk of a trade war

Imagine playing Risk… but with real factories, real families, real jobs.

This is the scenario that is looming on the horizon with the increase in US duties towards Europe .
A trade war that has nothing strategic. Because here you don’t win.
You lose .

• Jobs are lost .

• Orders and supplies are cancelled .

• Manufacturing companies , often family-run, are sinking .

• Value is destroyed , regardless of who starts it.

“Thinking that tariffs can rebalance markets is like thinking that the Earth is square.”
— Editoriale Coltelli

And it’s not a provocation. It’s a fact.

🌐 Global trade is an interconnected system

Every barrier, every block, every customs tax thrown in one place generates chain damage everywhere :

• Raw materials are becoming rare.

• Prices are skyrocketing.

• Supplies are slowing down.

• International collaborations are fraying.

• The craftsman from Maniago ends up in trouble, for decisions made 7000 km away.

💣 The real danger?

That those who deny all this will not pay the price . Local producers , small entrepreneurs , artisan knife makers , the kids who were about to open a micro workshop or take their father’s place in the company
will pay it .

A trade war is not fought. It is suffered.
And we must decide whether to suffer it in silence… or react.

🚨 The (well-founded) alarm by Franco Gussalli Beretta

When Franco Gussalli Beretta speaks , it is not just the president of the historic Pietro Beretta who speaks. It is the voice of someone who knows true manufacturing , the one made of metal, of export, of workers who every day transform matter into excellence.

And this voice sent out a warning as clear and sharp as a blade :

“The current global economic environment demands immediate action.
The Trump administration’s new plan is further aggravating the situation and requires a decisive response from Europe and Italy to maintain competitiveness and stimulate consumption.
We must act now. ”

His message is a wake-up call for the entire Italian industrial sector , including cutlery.

⚠️ Maniago risks an economic earthquake

The Friulian district, home of Italian cutlery , is under threat:

• ✅ Exports a large portion of production to the USA

• ✅ It imports high-end steels such as CPM MagnaCut from the USA , which is essential for quality handcrafted knives.

• ✅ It depends on international supply chains already stressed by pandemic, war and inflation

Now, with US tariffs and EU-US tension , everything can go up in smoke: orders, contracts, deliveries, costs and foreign customer confidence.

This is not a sectoral crisis.
It is a deep fault line that runs through the entire Italian manufacturing economy
. And those who work with steel, knives and precision know it well: if the material is missing, even the talent stops.

🔩 The steel knot: we export scrap, we buy back steel… at its weight in gold

There is a huge flaw in the European production system.
An industrial paradox that, in times of trade war, we can no longer ignore .

🇮🇹 Here’s what happens every day :

• Italy (and other EU countries) exports tons of raw ferrous scrap .

• This scrap ends up in the USA, where it is transformed into high-tech steels such as CPM MagnaCut .

• Then we buy it back at very high costs to make knives, tools, precision components.

An absurd system, which today plays against us .

🧨 In a context of duties and customs blocks, it becomes a strategic problem:

• 🔻 Dependence on foreign countries for key materials

• 🔻 Price increases and supply instability

• 🔻 Risk of sudden production blockages

“It is necessary to block the export of scrap outside the EU to preserve the resources essential to the production processes of the steel-metallurgical and metalworking sectors, pillars of the entire Italian and European manufacturing industry.”
— Franco Gussalli Beretta

🛠️ The solution? One key word: productive sovereignty.

• ✅ Retain the scrap to process it in our factories

• ✅ Encourage internal recycling and the short steel supply chain

• ✅ Relaunch European production of special steels for cutlery, tools and quality manufacturing

It’s not just about economics.
It’s about independence. It’s about vision. It’s about the future.

👷‍♂️ Young people, work and returning to Italy: the other forgotten emergency

The crisis is not just about tariffs, steel and exports.

It is made of missing hands, brain drain, unfindable apprentices .
In Maniago, the beating heart of Italian cutlery, companies cannot find young people to employ . And this also happens in other historic districts of Made in Italy.

Meanwhile, 352,000 young Italians have left the country in the last 10 years.
Many attracted by the United States , precisely by that market that is now being closed with duties.

“The recent tensions with Europe could generate a change of perspective, encouraging their return. But a tax law is needed to attract workers from abroad, expanding and strengthening the mechanisms already tested.”
— Franco Gussalli Beretta

🚨 What does it really mean?

• Young people trained in Italy are strengthening foreign economies .

• Those who would like to return often do not find the minimum conditions to do so.

• Manufacturing is losing generation after generation and is weakening internally.

✅ What you need right away:

• Targeted tax incentives for those returning from abroad

• Tax relief for companies that hire young people who have returned to Italy

• Updated technical training and synergies with production districts

• Active communication to enhance modern artisan trades

Bringing back a young specialist is like bringing back an elite knifemaker.
We can no longer afford to lose them. Not as a country, not as an industry.

🔥 The fallout for artisanal knife makers: the perfect storm

In the heart of the workshop, among sparks and tempered steel, few expected that a stroke of the pen from overseas could upset the entire production ecosystem. And instead, for Italian artisan knife makers , that signature of Donald Trump on the new duties represents the beginning of a perfect storm . But what does it mean, concretely, for those who live every day among drills, grinders, ovens and special steels?

1. 📈 Skyrocketing prices of imported steel

The materials most loved by artisanal makers – such as CPM MagnaCut, S90V, Vanax, S35VN – are largely produced and distributed by American steel mills or US partners. With the new duties, the price of these steels:

• could increase by 20% to 60% (depending on the type of steel and the volume imported);

• It could become economically unsustainable for those who produce knives on a small scale and cannot place bulk orders.

A MagnaCut knife that costs €450 today may no longer be sellable at a competitive price tomorrow, especially in the US or Japanese markets.

2. 🚚 Logistics and customs slowdowns on exports

In addition to costs, there is time :

• Longer customs clearances

• Additional inspections

• Possible customs holds or blockages

All this means: delays in deliveries , dissatisfied customers, negative reviews and loss of credibility for artisans who until yesterday were considered “reliable and punctual”.

3. ⚖️ Unfair competition from non-EU countries

While Europe and the US are waging war on each other with tariffs, other global players are taking advantage :

• Companies in Pakistan, China, India, Brazil continue to export low-cost steel and knives.

• They flood platforms like eBay, Etsy, Amazon with aesthetically similar but qualitatively inferior products.

• Less experienced customers don’t notice the difference , and choose the lower price.

This fuels a dangerous race to the bottom that undermines years of work on quality, artisanal value and Made in Italy.

4. 👨‍🏭 Chronic shortage of young manpower

The situation is further aggravated because:

• Many young Italians have left the country;

• Technical schools and vocational institutes are experiencing declining enrollments;

• Generational turnover is blocked.

A laboratory that today has no apprentices, tomorrow will have no continuity . And if the materials are also missing, the risk is to shut down the forges forever .

5. 🌍 Marginalization in large international markets

Being excluded from key markets like the US means:

• Loss of visibility at international trade fairs;

• Difficulty collaborating with global designers, influencers and wholesalers;

• Inability to scale or expand your brand.

The danger is not only economic , but also identity-related : Italian makers risk becoming “regional artisans”, cut off from the circuits that count.

🧨 The end of the “global supply chain” illusion

The global supply chain, which seemed to be an achievement of modernity, today turns out to be fragile and manipulable . An independent maker who relies on supplies from the USA for steel, from the Philippines for exotic woods, and from Germany for screws and small parts, today lives in a constant state of uncertainty .

The illusion of total globalization has shattered against the wall of tariffs and economic wars.

The real risk? That the artisan becomes hostage of the markets, of regulations, of international crises. Without tools, without a voice, without a network.

💡 So, what can a maker do today?

Here are 5 concrete actions to resist and reinvent yourself:

1. Diversify supplies : start testing alternative European steels (Uddeholm, Böhler, Voestalpine).

2. Telling your artisanal value : strong storytelling, process photos, explaining what is behind each blade.

3. Cultivate the domestic market : strengthen the Italian and European network, promote direct sales and local fairs.

4. Train new artisans : open workshops for young people, create educational content, activate collaborations with technical schools.

5. Join other makers to apply collective pressure : write to political representatives, create associations, make your voice heard.

🔧 What to do now: vision, action, pressure

We can no longer wait. We can no longer remain silent.
This is the moment to act , together , with a strategy that unites politics, industry and craftsmanship .

Here’s what you need now , without compromise:

🛡️ 1. Defend European cutlery exports

We need bilateral agreements, customs concessions and a united front against punitive duties that hit quality, not quantity.

🔓 2. Maintain free access to strategic materials

Steels like MagnaCut, Vanax and S90V are not a maker whim, but tools of excellence. Blocking them means killing innovation.

🇮🇹 3. Encourage the return of young Italian artisans

Taxes, training and dignity. Those who left can return only if they find fertile ground, not bureaucracy and starvation wages.

🌍 4. Promote the “Italian Knife” in the world

Let’s tell it better. Culture, design, functionality, history. Made in Italy is not just fashion or food: it is also steel and passion.

🤝 5. Joining forces between artisans, districts and politics

Small makers can’t do it alone. You need a network, a front, a plan. Coordinated. Solid. Continuous.

Those who do not move today will be forced to chase tomorrow.
The knife is a symbol of resistance, work and ingenuity.
Let’s defend it.

Conclusion: between resilience and responsibility

The cutlery industry, and knife making in particular, is much more than a production niche: it is identity, history, know-how, technical excellence, passion , passed down from generation to generation. But without steel, without a market and without young people, all of this risks dying out.

We need a united response, not only reactive but also proactive . And we need it now. Because in times of tariffs and economic wars, silence is consent and action can still change destiny.

Are You Experience?!

Andrea

FAQ – US Tariffs, Steel Crisis and Italian Cutlery

1. What are the duties announced by Trump in 2025?
The new duties are additional customs duties applied to products imported into the United States, including those from the European Union. They affect strategic sectors such as steel, machinery, tools and industrial components, directly impacting the cutlery supply chain.

2. Why are these duties a problem for Italian knives?
Many Italian manufacturers, both industrial and artisanal, export knives and accessories to the USA . The introduction of duties makes these products more expensive and less competitive on the American market, causing possible loss of customers, orders and margins.

3. What does CPM MagnaCut have to do with it?
CPM MagnaCut is a cutting-edge American steel, highly regarded for premium and artisan knives. If duties or trade restrictions also affect materials, Italian knife makers risk no longer having easy access to this resource , or having to pay high prices for it.

4. Is it true that Italy exports raw steel and buys it back processed?
Yes, it is a production paradox. Italy (and the EU in general) exports ferrous scrap , a key raw material for the production of special steels, and then buys back processed steel from third countries, often with a negative impact on industrial sovereignty and costs.

5. What are the consequences for artisan knife makers?
Price increases on materials, supply difficulties, export limits, regulatory and logistical uncertainty. In practice, everything that can slow down or compromise the sustainability of an artisan workshop, especially if it works with top-of-the-range steels for foreign customers.

6. How can the Italian sector react?
A coordinated response is needed at industrial, political and local levels. Among the recommended actions:

• block the indiscriminate export of scrap outside the EU;

• support the domestic steel supply chain;

• introduce measures to encourage the return of young expatriate workers;

• encourage local production and strategic bilateral agreements.

7. What can a craftsman or small producer do in practice?

• Diversify material supplies (e.g. use alternative European steels where possible);

• Strengthen the communication of the Made in Italy value to justify any price increases;

• Invest in networking and collaborations with other makers ;

• Follow carefully the regulatory evolution and, if possible, participate in association networks or fairs to give visibility to the problem.

8. How can we help raise public awareness?
Share content, write articles, tell the real impact on our activities, sign sectoral petitions, contact local political representatives. The voice of the artisan is important, but it must be heard.