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Trump announces 50% tariff on copper imports; experts warn of price surge
'Copper is necessary for semiconductors, aircraft, ships, ammunition, data centres, lithium-ion batteries, radar systems, missile defence systems, and even hypersonic weapons,' Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social. 'Copper is the second most used material by the Department of Defence! Why did our foolish (and sleepy!) 'Leaders' decimate this important industry?... this is, after all, our golden age!'
Copper tariff to hit downstream sectors
The tariff, floated earlier this week following a US Cabinet meeting, has already triggered volatility in US commodity markets. Copper prices surged 13 per cent on Tuesday, hitting record highs in anticipation of the formal announcement.
Copper is a critical raw material in sectors ranging from electronics and automobiles to infrastructure and defence. It is widely used in wiring, plumbing, radiators and appliances, and is a key input for the electric grid.
US economists and manufacturers have warned that the new tariff could raise input costs for everything from electric vehicles and air conditioners to home repairs and consumer electronics.
'This is going to hit manufacturers across the board,' Peter Logan, metals analyst at Morgan Stanley, told CBS News. 'We're expecting inflationary pressure across housing, transport and renewable sectors. Maintaining the electric grid alone could become significantly costlier.'
The US depends on copper imports
The United States relied on imports to meet 53 per cent of its copper demand in 2024, according to Morgan Stanley. Chile is the largest supplier, followed by Canada and a handful of other countries, including India.
Trump's move is the latest in a string of protectionist trade policies. Earlier this week, he indicated that a 200 per cent tariff on pharmaceutical imports may be implemented in the next 12 to 18 months. The copper tariff follows broader duties already imposed this year, including a near-universal 10 per cent tariff on all imports and sector-specific tariffs on steel, aluminium and automobiles.
Limited impact of copper tariffs on India
India exported $2.1 billion worth of copper in 2024, with the US accounting for over 15 per cent of that total. However, the impact on Indian exporters is expected to be minimal, according to industry officials.
'India is a copper-deficient country, and most of our production is consumed domestically, especially with rising demand from renewable energy, EVs and other copper-intensive sectors,' said industry expert A Karmarkar, as earlier reported by Business Standard. 'The US tariff will not have any material effect on Indian firms.'
Coal and Mines Minister G Kishan Reddy also said on Wednesday that the government will engage with the US to understand the broader ramifications, but stated that domestic consumption remains the priority for Indian producers.
US to collect $300 billion in tariff revenues
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said this week that tariff collections have already crossed $100 billion this year. He expects the figure to rise to $300 billion by the end of 2025 as the full impact of new trade measures kicks in.
'Major collections began in the second quarter, when the universal 10 per cent import duty was implemented and sectoral tariffs were raised,' Bessent said in a White House meeting.
The Trump administration maintains that the tariff will strengthen domestic supply chains and national defence capabilities. Earlier today, the White House also sent out letters to nations with new tariffs. Brazil has already stated that it will look into retaliatory measures.
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Indian Express
15 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Let citizenship to daughter of OCI cardholders be one-off, don't open floodgates: Govt to HC
After a single-judge bench of the Delhi High Court directed the Centre to grant Indian citizenship to a 'stateless' 17-year-old girl born in India to a couple of Indian-origin holding US citizenship, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has challenged the HC's 'views' on 'illegal immigrant' and 'person of Indian-origin'. The MHA, represented by government pleader Abhigyan Siddhant, urged the division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela on Monday to clarify that the single-judge's judgment of May 15, 2024 should be considered as an individual case and not a precedent, meaning it may not be used for relief in other cases. The MHA apprehends that the single judge's observation on the two aspects 'may open floodgates for many other illegal migrants in seeking Indian citizenship' and 'would have a cascading effect and would dilute the spirit of the Citizenship Act, 1955.' The 2024 ruling was in the case of Rachita Francis Xavier, born in 2006 in Nidamanuru, Andhra Pradesh, to parents who were earlier Indian citizens and obtained US citizenship in 2001 and 2005. In 2019, when Rachita applied for a passport to study abroad, her request was denied on the ground that she cannot be recognised as a citizen of India, effectively leaving her with no recognition of citizenship, either in India or the US. She then challenged the action before the Delhi HC. Relying on the citizenship laws and provisions, the MHA had told the HC that she could not be considered as a 'person of Indian origin' and that she would in fact be considered an 'illegal migrant' under Section 2 (1) (b) of the Citizenship Act because she did not have any valid travel document, or a visa under which she could stay in India. Her parents were residing in India and holding Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card at the time of her birth and Rachita had lived all her life in India by then. In its verdict on May 15, 2024, the single-judge bench, noting Rachita's 'unique' position, said she would not qualify as an 'illegal migrant', and would qualify as a 'person of Indian origin'. It directed that she be granted Indian citizenship. It observed that Rachita 'has effectively been rendered stateless, thereby facing significant limitations on her fundamental rights as also universal human rights in the absence of citizenship and political belonging.' Rachita was granted citizenship on July 31, 2024. The MHA, in an appeal moved against the single judge's order, while not challenging the direction for the grant of citizenship, has challenged the judge's declaration that Rachita is not an 'illegal migrant' and is to be considered as a 'person of Indian origin'. It has said the declaration is in contravention to the laws. The MHA has submitted that the May 2024 order errs in observing that the definition of 'illegal migrant' will not apply to Rachita solely on the fact that she was born in India and has never gone out of India. Opposing this deduction by the single judge, the MHA has countered that Section 2 (1) (b) of the Citizenship Act, 1955, clearly defines 'illegal migrant' which would include a child born in India and devoid of any valid travel documents. It has pressed for 'harmonious' reading of the Citizenship Act with the Foreigners Act, 1946 which cover provisions for all types of foreigners including children born in India to foreigners. The MHA has highlighted that the law already provides for visa services to children born to foreigners in India within 90 days of their birth. The MHA has stressed that the single judge also erred in declaring Rachita as a 'person of Indian origin' solely on the basis of the fact that her mother was born in independent India. Relying on section 5 of the Act, the MHA has submitted that a person shall be deemed to be of Indian origin if the person, or either of the parents, was born in undivided India or in such other territory which became part of India after August 15, 1947 (such as Sikkim), with 'undivided India' meaning India as defined in the Government of India Act, 1935. 'Any person born in India thereafter (after August 15, 1947) would, subject to fulfilment of statutory/constitutional requirements, be a citizen of India by birth and descendants of such person are not covered under definition of Indian Origin. Any other interpretation would lead to a situation where even a person born in Pakistan, Bangladesh, etc., after independence, i.e., after 15.08.1947, would be person of Indian Origin, which could not have been the intention of the law makers; and if such interpretation is accepted, it would lead to disastrous consequences,' the MHA has submitted. The HC has now kept the matter for further consideration on October 15.
Indian Express
15 minutes ago
- Indian Express
NCERT social science textbook: New Class 8 book chapter on colonial era skips Tipu Sultan, Anglo-Mysore wars
The new NCERT Class 8 Social Science textbook skips the mention of Tipu Sultan, Haidar Ali or the Anglo-Mysore wars of 1700s in its chapter on India's colonial era, which has been described as time when 'one of the richest lands of the world had become one of the poorest'. Part 1 of the textbook — 'Exploring Society: Indian and Beyond' — was released this week for use in the ongoing academic session. A second part is expected this year. The chapter on the colonial era covers the period from the late 1400s and the arrival of Vasco da Gama up to the late 1800s, including the 'Great Indian Rebellion of 1857'. It traces the shift of the British from being traders to rulers, refers to the Battle of Plassey — a decisive victory for the East India Company against Nawab of Bengal in 1757 — and the 'drain of India's wealth' during this period. A section on the early resistance movements that challenged British colonialism in the run-up to the 1857 rebellion refers to the 'Sannyasi-Fakir rebellion' of the 1700s, the Kol Uprising, and the Santhal rebellion and 'peasant uprisings' of the 1800s. In a separate chapter on the Marathas, it refers to the Anglo-Maratha wars between 1775 and 1818 and states that 'the British took India from the Marathas more than from the Mughals or any other power'. In the old Class 8 Social Science textbook, a section on the expansion of the East India Company's rule from 1757 to 1857 also pointed to the resistance to them from the rulers of Mysore — referring to Mysore under Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan, 'the Tiger of Mysore', and the four Anglo-Mysore Wars in the 1700s. It also described the wars the Marathas fought against the East India Company. When asked if Tipu Sultan and the Anglo-Mysore wars may find a mention in part 2 of the new Social Science book, Michel Danino, who chaired NCERT's group that developed the book based on the National Education Policy 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework, said chapters for part 2 'are not ready yet'. 'But a temporary answer is: probably not,' he said. 'It's unfortunately not possible to cover all events of the colonial period; if we try to, we fall back into the old mode of cramming textbooks with dates, wars etc. In the Middle Stage (Classes 6-8), we only do a quick overview of Indian history; in the Secondary Stage (Classes 9 to 12), there will be opportunities to go over some periods — especially the crucial one of colonial domination — in greater depth,' he added. 'Drain of wealth' Referring to the 'age of colonialism' and the expansion of the European powers from the 15th century onwards in different parts of the world, the book notes that while the colonisers claimed they had a 'civilizing mission', the reality was different and included 'destruction of traditional ways of life, and the imposition of foreign cultural values.' According to the new book, until the 16th century, when European powers began sailing to the Indian subcontinent, India contributed 'at least one-fourth of the world GDP during this whole period, making it one of the two largest economies globally alongside China (whose contribution was of the same order).' A later section in the chapter points out that 'India's share of the world GDP kept declining throughout the colonial rule, reaching hardly 5 per cent at the time of Independence. In less than two centuries, one of the richest lands of the world had become one of the poorest.' Similarly, a section on the 'drain of India's wealth' says the colonisers extracted 'many billions of pounds from India', and 'a more recent estimate (by Utsa Patnaik) for the period 1765 to 1938 comes to 45 trillion US dollars (in today's value)'. 'Had this wealth remained invested in India, it would have been a very different country when it attained independence,' it says. The new book also says the construction of India's railways 'was not a gift from the colonial rulers to India.' 'Most of it was paid for by Indian tax revenue, which means that Indian funded infrastructure primarily served British strategic and commercial interests. The same can be said of the telegraph network,' it says. The colonial powers 'stole thousands of statues, paintings, jewels, manuscripts and other cultural artefacts from India and sent them to European museums or private collections,' the book says, adding that such 'massive theft' took place over much of the colonized world. The old Class 8 book did not have the sections on the railways, the 'theft' of artefacts, and world GDP. Said Danino: 'We included the real facts on the financing of the Indian railway and telegraph (and several wars, including putting down the 1857 Rebellion) because otherwise we give a wrong impression that these were great gifts by the colonial powers. They were no gifts and contributed to make poor Indians (especially the peasant class) even poorer through revenue extraction.' He maintained that his remarks reflect his personal opinion.
The Hindu
15 minutes ago
- The Hindu
New NCERT textbook explains how ‘colonial powers stole India's wealth'
The new Class 8 Social Science textbook of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) introduced to students in academic year 2025-26 describes the colonial rule of the European powers especially the British to be the one which 'drained India of its wealth'. Chapter 4 of the new NCERT textbook Exploring Society: India and Beyond states that, '…the Industrial Revolution in Britain, which required investment, was made possible at least partly by the 'stolen wealth from India'.' 'Stolen wealth from India' is a phrase used by U.S. historian Will Durant, it states. 'The general thrust of Britain's dominance in India was plunder, exploitation, trade dominance, imposition of educational, administrative and judicial systems, and Christianization,' Michel Danino, Head, the NCERT's Curricular Area Group for Social Science, told The Hindu. An official statement released by the NCERT said, 'All the facts presented in this textbook are based on well-known primary and secondary academic sources. However, in order to avoid generation of any prejudice and misunderstanding, 'A note on history's darker period' at page 20 has been added.' The note states, 'While those happenings cannot be erased or denied, it would be wrong to hold anyone today responsible for them...' The fourth chapter goes on to include a quote by William Digby which states, '...Modern England has been made great by Indian wealth, ...wealth always taken by the might and skill of the stronger.' 'A recent estimate for the wealth extracted out of India given by Indian economist Utsa Patnaik, in the period from 1765 to 1938, coming at 45 trillion U.S. dollars or about 13 times Britain's GDP in 2023. Had this wealth remained invested in India, it would have been a very different country when it attained independence,' the chapter states. 'This was extracted not just through taxes, but by charging Indians for the colonial power's expenditures on building the railways, the telegraph network and even on wars!' the chapter further states. 'In India, it is common to find the colonial period portrayed as a positive one, with the British bringing industries, railways, the telegraph, modern education, and so on. We have tried to correct this perspective by showing what really happened — the destruction of India's indigenous industries and educational system, the enormous revenue extraction from the Indian population to finance railway and telegraph, etc,' Mr. Danino stated. 'Of course we have also shown the other side — the opening up of India to the world and Europe's discovery of India's ancient culture, among others,' he further added. The chapter also states that converting indigenous populations to Christianity was a powerful motivation (for territorial expansion of European powers). Colonisation led to loss of independence, exploitation of resources by the colonisers, destruction of traditional ways of life and the imposition of foreign cultural values, the new NCERT textbook states. Portugese navigator Vasco da Gama 'seized, tortured and killed Indian merchants, and bombarded Calicut from sea,' the chapter states. 'The Portuguese presence was characterised by religious persecution... of Hindus, Muslims, Jews and Christian converts...,' the chapter further says. It also highlights the destruction of Pondicherry's original Vedapurishwaram temple, ordered by Joseph François Dupleix, Governor General of French India in 1748. The chapter states that the British systematically dismantled indigenous governance systems of village communities and replaced them with a centralised bureaucracy. 'While presented as modernisation, this imposition of a foreign system unsuited to India alienated Indians from the judicial system, creating courts that were expensive, time-consuming and conducted in a foreign language,' it states. Traditional versus modern systems of education The chapter states that diverse educational traditions such as padashalas, madrasas and viharas transmitted not only practical knowledge but also cultural values and traditions. It quotes from British reports which stated that hundreds of thousands of village schools were present across India (for instance, 1,00,000 to 1,50,000 of them in Bengal and Bihar) 'where young natives are taught reading, writing and arithmetic, upon a system so economical ... and at the same time so simple and effectual...' Also, the chapter states that the system education proposed by the British became a powerful tool for the creation of a class of Indians who would serve British interests; it quotes Thomas B. Macaulay who emphasised that 'Indians needed British education... to create a class of Indians who would be Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, opinions, morals and intellect.' The chapter goes on to say that while a few prominent British Orientalists argued that Indian students should be left to study in their own languages, Macaulay's policy gained the upper hand and India's traditional schools slowly disappeared, while English became a language of prestige associated with colonial masters. This resulted in lasting divisions in Indian society between English-educated elites and the masses. 'It also sidelined traditional sources of knowledge and authority, creating generations of Indians disconnected from their own cultural heritage,' the chapter states. Addition of a chapter on the Maratha Empire The new NCERT textbook, unlike the earlier ones that made a passing reference to the Marathas, has now introduced an entire chapter dedicated to 'The Rise of the Marathas'. 'In effect, the British took India from the Marathas more than from the Mughals or any other power,' the NCERT textbook states. Marathas have been described as 'a powerful political entity that will alter the course of India's history'. The chapter talks about Shivaji's need to establish a navy as a 'revolutionary step' and his exploits as 'legendary'. The chapter goes on to state that when Shivaji attacked Surat, which was a wealthy port city in Mughal Empire, he obtained an enormous treasure of almost one crore rupees, but was careful not to attack religious places. In contrast, the Mughal rulers (like Babur, Akbar and Aurangzeb) have been described as 'brutal' in the previous chapter titled 'Reshaping India's Political Map'. The chapter says they 'destroyed temples' and their rule was fraught with 'religious intolerance.' In contrast, Shivaji has been described as 'a devout Hindu... who rebuilt desecrated temples, promoted Sanskrit and Marathi literature, religious institutions and traditional arts'. Ahilyabai Holkar, an 18th century Maratha ruler, has been described as 'a devout person who built and restored hundreds of temples, ghats, wells and roads throughout India, from Kedarnath in north to Rameswaram in south. She rebuilt the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi that had been destroyed by Aurangzeb and Somnath temple in Gujarat destroyed by Mahmud of Ghazni,' the chapter states. 'Evolution of India' 'Class 8 being the last year of the middle stage, the students are expected to acquire a broad multi-perspective understanding of our past between 13th to mid-19th century and how the various events of that period have helped shape and influenced the evolution of India of today,' a official statement from the NCERT said. 'This textbook attempts to provide an idea about the geography, history (medieval & modern), economic life and governance of the country, from a multi-disciplinary perspective in an integrated way,' it says. 'Our aim has been to consistently avoid attempting to load the child with too much information and to develop a critical understanding of the subject. Hence , the various facts, have been presented in a comprehensible manner to promote holistic learning in this textbook,' the statement further said.
