Trump Tariff Update February 2025
On Sunday 11th February 2025, President Trump, whilst aboard Airforce One, announced to reporters that he would be applying tariffs of 25% on ALL imports of aluminium and steel widening the spread of tariffs to some of the United States’ top trading partners. Such partners include Canada and Mexico with whom he announced a moratorium on tariffs for one month, however the President did not specify when these new import duties will take effect.
President Trump, keeping to his word and pre-election promises also stated that the week starting 10th February 2025 he would announce penalty or reciprocal tariffs on those countries that currently tax/tariff imports from the United States. He went on to say that once these reciprocal import duties had been announced such actions would be implemented almost immediately.
However, financial markets (that have recently been rattled by an unpredictable President regarding tariffs), where he has announced tariffs on both Mexico and Canada then he put them on hold, whilst at the same time carried out his threat of 10% import duties on all imports from China, who’s retaliatory tariffs come into effect today 10th February. However, these current import levies are in part to help protect those domestic industries without whose help, President Trump may not have won those essential battleground states being fought over in last year’s presidential election.
According to experts in the ferrous arena, the United States has a vast demand for aluminium and in 2023 net imports were above 80% from countries such as Mexico, Canada, and the UAE (United Arab Emirates). Steel imports, whilst smaller in consumption to that of aluminium, are vital for areas manufacturing, aerospace, and in both green/renewable energy sectors and the fossil fuel sectors. During President Donald Trump’s first term some oil companies won exclusion from tariffs, so it will be interesting to see if such concessions are awarded in the second presidency.
Such announcements have put the executive arm for trading for the European Union on red alert, but they have announced that they will wait on further details before responding to the threat of these new tariffs. However, a spokesperson did go on to say that “the imposition of these new duties would be unlawful and economically counterproductive”. Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea which exports both steel and aluminium to the United States are already expediting searches for new markets, especially as by value the USA is the largest destination their of steel exports.
Some analysts have pointed out that due to high costs steel mills in the United States are already running at less than full capacity due to high costs, and now they would have to either whirr up production to compensate for lower imports putting prices up to their customers. President Trump has put tariffs front and centre in his bid to rebuild the US economy, but how many of these tariffs will be used as just a threat for him to get his own way in other areas?.
