In yet another dramatic escalation of his trade policy reform, US President Donald Trump said on Monday that the US will slap 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, on top of further metal charges that are anticipated to be announced later this week.
Speaking to reporters onboard Air Force One on Sunday on his way to the NFL Super Bowl in New Orleans, Trump also stated that he will announce retaliatory tariffs as early as Tuesday, which would go into effect practically immediately.
However, the Republican did not specify who would be targeted by the reciprocal tariffs, but he did state that the US would match tariff rates applied by other nations and that this would apply to all countries. “And, very simply, if they charge us, we charge them,” he stated of his reciprocal tariff proposal.
During his first term in the White House, from 2016 until 2020, Trump placed 25% tariffs on steel and 10% on aluminum, but eventually provided duty-free quotas to key trade partners, including Canada, Mexico, and Brazil. Former President Joe Biden expanded similar limitations to Britain, Japan, and the European Union, and US steel mill capacity utilization has decreased in recent years.
More Trouble for Canada and Mexico?
According to government data, the major suppliers of US steel imports are Canada, Brazil, and Mexico, followed by South Korea and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Canada is the largest exporter of basic aluminum metal to the United States by a wide margin, accounting for 79% of total imports in the first eleven months of 2024. Mexico is a major source of aluminum scrap and alloys.
Matching rates?
The US President said he will conduct a press conference on Tuesday or Wednesday to offer further details on the reciprocal tariff plan, adding that he initially stated on Friday that he was proposing reciprocal duties to guarantee “that we’re treated evenly with other countries.”
Trump has often grumbled about the EU’s 10% tariffs on auto imports, which are far higher than the American automobile rate of 2.5%. He repeatedly claims that Europe “will not take our cars,” despite the fact that millions of cars are sent west across the Atlantic each year.
However, the United States has a 25% tax on pickup trucks, which are a critical source of profit for Detroit automakers General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis’ US businesses.
According to World Trade Organization data, the US trade-weighted average tariff rate is around 2.2%, compared to 12% in India, 6.7% in Brazil, 5.1% in Vietnam, and 2.7% in European Union nations.
