Some U.S. companies say they are already feeling a squeeze from President Trump Donald John TrumpBiden on Trump's refusal to commit to peaceful transfer of power: 'What country are we in?' Romney: 'Unthinkable and unacceptable' to not commit to peaceful transition of power Two Louisville police officers shot amid Breonna Taylor grand jury protests MORE's new tariffs on steel and aluminum.

A number of firms that manufacture products using the metals told The Wall Street Journal that the tariffs have led to higher material prices, forcing them to charge customers more for their products.

As a result, the companies told the Journal that some customers have chosen to take their business to foreign suppliers that use cheaper materials that eschew tariffs.

ADVERTISEMENT

The tariffs, originally announced in March and put into place Friday, have benefited U.S. steel manufacturers. But the firms that rely on steel and aluminum to make various products are concerned that higher prices will continue to drive their customers to do business abroad.

The impact of the tariffs on metal-consuming manufacturers in the U.S. has so far been limited.

Still, it signals how the Trump administration's efforts to bolster the U.S. steel and aluminum industries could see negative side effects trickle down across other industries.

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it would impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from key U.S. allies — the European Union (EU), Canada and Mexico — which had previously been exempt from the tariffs.

But trade talks had not progressed as far as the U.S. had hoped, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross Wilbur Louis RossTrump admin asks Supreme Court to fast-track excluding people in U.S. illegally from census Trump 'very happy' to allow TikTok to operate in US if security concerns resolved TikTok, WeChat to be banned Sunday from US app stores MORE said, leading the Trump administration to put the tariffs in place.

The duties have already prompted threats of retaliatory tariffs on American goods, ranging from blue jeans to yogurt. The EU and Canada filed challenges against the U.S. tariffs at the World Trade Organization on Friday.