Trump Levies 232 Tariffs On Finished Products Made of Steel, Aluminum
The government will impose an additional 25 percent tariffs on some steel articles and 10 percent on some aluminum products starting Feb. 8, President Donald Trump said in a proclamation released late on Jan. 24. The new tariffs are because there has been an import surge in some products made from steel and aluminum, and because domestic capacity has not risen as much as expected from the 232 tariff action, it said.
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The steel derivatives tariffs will apply to goods from all countries except for Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and South Korea, it said. The aluminum derivatives tariffs affect goods from all countries except Argentina, Australia, Canada, and Mexico.
The products that will face the tariffs -- some currently are tariff-free and some have low tariffs -- have to have a recent history of increased imports, past the overall 4 percent import increase of all products. The metals also have to account for at least 2/3 of the product's cost, the proclamation says. Examples of targeted products include steel nails, tacks and corrugated nails and aluminum automobile stampings, aluminum wire and cables.
According to the proclamation, the increase is the result of an assessment by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross that "foreign producers of these derivative articles have increased shipments of such articles to the United States to circumvent the duties on aluminum articles and steel articles."