Wacker Chemie O.N. (ETR:WCHG) shares climbed over 5% on Wednesday, reaching a three-week peak after reports that the Trump administration is considering new trade steps designed to aid U.S. polysilicon producers. The stock advanced 5.7% to 8Euro995.60, its strongest level since July 15, and outperformed the broader European market following a session in which the pan-European STOXX 600 had closed at a record high the day before.
The contemplated measures would establish a minimum import price alongside tariffs on polysilicon and related products, according to the report. They are being examined within the scope of a national security investigation and are intended to protect domestic polysilicon makers from competition originating in China. The package could be announced later this month.
Wacker Chemie was named among the companies expected to benefit from the proposed interventions. The company operates a polysilicon production plant in Tennessee, making it a direct participant in the U.S. manufacturing base for this raw material.
Details of the proposal, as described in the reporting, indicate the combination of a price floor and import tariffs would apply to polysilicon and derivative products. The objective is to bolster U.S. supply chains for two key industries that rely on polysilicon: solar panel manufacturing and semiconductor fabrication.
The report also said the administration is exploring mechanisms to offset higher costs for firms that invest in U.S.-based wafer and solar cell production. Officials are said to be attempting to balance the goal of supporting domestic manufacturers with the concern that higher input costs could raise expenses for solar developers and chipmakers.
Commenting on the material role of polysilicon, Wacker said in a statement that it is indispensable to both semiconductor and solar manufacturing, adding that "without polysilicon, the next steps of the value chain... are not possible."
The potential trade steps and related cost-offset discussions touch on multiple parts of the industrial and energy value chains. Manufacturers of polysilicon and related materials would be the immediate beneficiaries of import protection, while solar developers and semiconductor companies are among those that could face higher procurement costs depending on how support is structured.
For equity markets, stocks of companies with exposure to polysilicon production reacted quickly to the policy news, with Wacker Chemie among those seeing notable share-price gains on expectations of a more protected domestic market.