U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday signed proclamations to raise tariffs on aluminum from 10 percent to 25 percent and ended duty-free quotas, exemptions and exclusions for steel and aluminum tariffs.
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"This is a big deal. This is the beginning of making America rich again," Trump said when signing the proclamations in the Oval Office. "It's time for our great industries to come back to America."
The U.S. president added that there will be no exceptions for these tariffs.
"In light of the Secretary’s findings regarding the alternative agreements with South Korea proclaimed in Proclamation 9740; Argentina, Australia, and Brazil proclaimed in Proclamation 9759; Canada and Mexico proclaimed in Proclamation 9894; EU countries proclaimed in Proclamation 10328; Japan proclaimed in Proclamation 10356; and the United Kingdom proclaimed in Proclamation 10406, I have revisited the determinations in these proclamations.
"In my judgment, the arrangements with these countries have failed to provide effective, long-term alternative means to address these countries’ contribution to the threatened impairment to the national security by restraining steel articles exports to the United States from each of them, limiting transshipment and surges and distorted pricing, and discouraging excess steel capacity and excess steel production.
"Thus, I have determined that steel articles imports from these countries threaten to impair the national security, and I have decided that it is necessary to terminate these arrangements as of March 12, 2025.
"As of that date, all imports of steel articles and derivative steel articles from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, EU countries, Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and the United Kingdom shall be subject to the additional ad valorem tariff proclaimed in Proclamation 9705 with respect to steel articles and Proclamation 9980 with respect to derivative steel articles.
"In my judgment, these modifications are necessary to address the significantly increasing share of imports of steel articles and derivative steel articles from these sources, which threaten to impair U.S. national security.
"Replacing the alternative agreements with the additional ad valorem tariffs will be a more robust and effective means of ensuring that the objectives articulated in the Secretary’s January 11, 2018, report and subsequent proclamations are achieved.
"For the same reasons, I have also revisited the determinations in Proclamation 10403, Proclamation 10558, and Proclamation 10771.
"In my judgment, the arrangement with Ukraine has failed to provide effective, long-term alternative means to address Ukraine’s contribution to the threatened impairment to our national security by restraining steel articles exports to the United States from Ukraine, limiting transshipment and surges, and discouraging excess steel capacity and excess steel production.
"Thus, I have determined that steel articles imports from Ukraine threaten to impair the national security and have determined that it is necessary to terminate the temporary exemption for imports of steel articles and derivative steel articles from Ukraine as proclaimed in Proclamation 10403, Proclamation 10558, and Proclamation 10771.
"In my judgment, terminating this exemption will prevent abuses that have resulted in significantly increasing imports from sources other than Ukraine, will prevent evasion of antidumping duties, and will support the domestic steel industry without harming Ukraine’s economic recovery,"Trump said.
During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum imports citing national security concerns. He later allowed certain trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and Brazil, to receive duty-free quotas.
Under former President Joe Biden, the United States continued some tariff exemptions introduced under Trump and extended new quotas for the European Union, Britain and Japan.
A 2019 study published by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed that Trump's 2018 widespread tariffs on steel and aluminum, as well as tariffs on Chinese goods, along with the countermeasures they triggered, led to a loss of manufacturing jobs in the United States.
When signing the proclamations, Trump said his administration was weighing so-called "reciprocal tariffs" on products such as chips, cars and pharmaceuticals.
He claimed that other countries had taken advantage of the United States in trade for many years and the United States needed to raise tariffs to the same level as these countries.
Since the beginning of his second term, Trump has quickly rolled out a series of protectionist measures, which have been widely opposed both domestically and internationally.
On February 1, Trump signed executive orders to impose 25-percent additional tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico and a 10-percent tariff increase on imports from China, drawing widespread opposition and immediate retaliations.
He later paused the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for one month to allow negotiations. ■