Australian shares dip as Trump's tariffs target copper
At midday on Wednesday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 index was down 27.2 points, or 0.32 per cent, to 8,565.3, while the broader All Ordinaries lost 25.5 points, or 0.29 per cent, to 8,803.2.
Overnight, the US president said drug manufacturers would be given a year or so to move manufacturing to the US, otherwise they would "tariffed at a very, very high rate, like 200 per cent".
Mr Trump also flagged the White House would be imposing 50 per cent tariffs on copper, which Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said could begin at the end of July or start of August.
Copper prices surged after the comments, ending the trading day up 13.1 per cent for their strongest one-day gain since 1989.
Australia is a major copper producer but exports very little to the United States, with most going to China and other Asian-Pacific countries. The US gets most of its copper from Chile.
"The idea is to bring copper home, bring copper production home," Mr Lutnick said later on CNBC.
IG analyst Tony Sycamore said that encouraging domestic copper production was a challenging objective given the complexities of relocating a copper mine.
At midday, seven of the ASX's 11 sectors were lower, with financials flat and energy, consumer discretionary and utility shares collectively higher.
The materials sector was down 0.6 per cent, with the iron ore giants higher and goldminers down as the price of the yellow metal dropped to a one-week low of $US3,310 an ounce.
BHP was up 0.4 per cent, Fortescue had added 0.7 per cent and Rio Tinto had advanced 0.6 per cent, while Northern Star was down 4.1 per cent, Evolution had retreated 8.8 per cent and West African Resources dropping 4.6 per cent.
Sandfire Resources, the largest copper-focused miner on the ASX, was down 3.8 per cent, while Capstone Copper Corp had retreated 2.9 per cent.
In the energy sector, uranium explorers and producers were under pressure, with Bannerman Energy falling 7.9 per cent and Deep Yellow retreating 7.1 per cent.
In the financial sector, the big four banks were mostly higher. Westpac had added 0.8 per cent, ANZ was up 0.2 per cent and NAB had advanced 0.4 per cent. CBA was the outlier, dropping 0.2 per cent.
In real estate, Lifestyle Communities had plunged 36.2 per cent to an eight-year low of $4.495 after a Victorian tribunal found the land lease operator breached the state's tenancy laws by charging residents significant exit fees without properly disclosing them.
Lifestyle Communities said it relied on legal advice when drafting the contracts, was disappointed with the outcome and intended to appeal.
In health care, Telix Pharmaceuticals was up 6.6 per cent after its prostate cancer imaging agent was granted a permanent insurance code by the US Medicare and Medicaid system.
The Australian dollar was buying 65.20 US cents, from 65.43 US cents at close of business on Tuesday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Perth Now
32 minutes ago
- Perth Now
Zelenskiy chats with Trump ahead of Putin deadline
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has had a "productive" conversation with his US counterpart Donald Trump about ending the war, sanctions on Russia and the finalisation of a US-Ukraine drone deal. Trump, who has signalled frustration with Vladimir Putin in recent weeks, has given the Russian president until Friday to make peace in Ukraine or face tougher sanctions. "President Trump is fully informed about Russian strikes on Kyiv and other cities and communities," Zelenskiy wrote on X, referring to intensifying drone and missile attacks. Trump has threatened to hit Russia with new sanctions and impose 100 per cent tariffs on countries that buy its oil, but sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters that Putin was unlikely to bow to the ultimatum. Putin retains the goal of capturing four regions of Ukraine in their entirety, sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters. His determination to keep going is prompted by his belief that Russia is winning and by scepticism that yet more US sanctions will have much of an impact after successive waves of economic penalties during 3.5 years of war, according to three sources familiar with discussions in the Kremlin. The Russian leader does not want to anger Trump, and he realises that he may be spurning a chance to improve relations with Washington and the West, but his war goals take precedence, two of the sources said. Putin's goal is to fully capture the Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, which Russia has claimed as its own, and then to talk about a peace agreement, one of the sources said. "If Putin were able to fully occupy those four regions, which he has claimed for Russia, he could claim that his war in Ukraine had reached his objectives," said James Rodgers, author of the forthcoming book The Return of Russia. Zelenskiy said Ukraine was also ready to conclude a deal with the US on the purchase of Ukrainian drones that would amount to "one of the strongest agreements". He had earlier said the deal was worth around $US30 billion ($A46 billion). Ukraine is increasingly seeking financing and investment from its foreign partners to bolster its burgeoning domestic arms industry. Zelenskiy said Kyiv's European partners had so far pledged to buy more than $US1 billion ($A1.5 billion) in US weapons for Ukraine as part of a new scheme. Sweden, Norway and Denmark will contribute around $US500 million ($A774 million) the three countries said on Tuesday. Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the money would be available immediately and that Denmark would be willing to consider additional funding later. "Speed is absolutely critical," he said in a statement.
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
European countries announce $1 bn purchase of US weapons for Ukraine
The Netherlands, Sweden, Norway and Denmark will buy $1 billion of US weapons under a new NATO scheme to support Ukraine in its war against Russia, the countries announced Tuesday. The purchases from US stockpiles are the first under the so-called Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL), a mechanism launched by US President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte last month. More are expected. The Dutch government said it would buy 500 million euros ($577 million) of weapons, and the three Scandinavian countries will jointly donate $500 million. All the governments highlighted the need to help Ukraine, which has faced mounting military pressure from Russia in recent months. "By supporting Ukraine with determination, we are increasing the pressure on Russia to negotiate," Dutch Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans posted on X. Brekelmans called near-daily Russian air strikes "pure terror" and warned that Moscow's advance into Ukrainian territory could pose a broader threat to Europe. "The more Russia dominates Ukraine, the greater the danger to the Netherlands and our NATO allies," he said. "Ukraine is not only fighting for its own security, but also for our security," Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson told a press conference to announce the Scandinavian initiative. Sweden will give $275 million towards the total. The Dutch package includes US Patriot missile parts and other systems for Ukraine's badly stretched front-line requirements, according to the defence ministry. The Swedish government said in a statement that the "support will include air defence systems, including munitions to Patriot, anti-tank systems, ammunition and spare parts". Washington is releasing weapons and military hardware for Ukraine from its stockpiles in $500 million tranches under the PURL mechanism. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hailed the donations as "a very strong initiative that significantly boosts our ability to protect lives". "These steps are a new, real foundation for long-term security across all of Europe. Russia will never turn Europe into a continent of war," Zelensky said on X. Zelensky spoke with Trump on Tuesday, three days ahead of a deadline the US leader has set for Russia to make an initiative to halt the war. He said in a social media post that the two had discussed sanctions against Russia and "bilateral defence cooperation" but did not give details. The NATO secretary general praised the Netherlands for being the first country to announce funding to the new scheme and also welcomed the Scandinavian move. "Since the earliest days of Russia's full-scale invasion, Denmark, Norway and Sweden have been steadfast in their support for Ukraine. I commend these allies for their quick efforts to get this initiative off the ground," Rutte said in a statement. jll/mmp/jc/tw/js
News.com.au
an hour ago
- News.com.au
Trump signals tariffs on pharma, chips as trade war widens
US President Donald Trump signaled Tuesday that fresh tariffs on imported pharmaceuticals and semiconductors could be unveiled as soon as the coming week, as he presses on in efforts to reshape global trade. Trump's latest comments, in an interview on CNBC, come days before a separate set of tariff hikes takes effect on dozens of economies later this week. The sweeping tariff plans have sparked a flurry of activity as governments seek to avert the worst of his threats -- with Switzerland's leaders heading to Washington on Tuesday in a last-minute push to avoid punitive duties. But he appears set to widen his trade wars further. The US president told CNBC that upcoming tariffs on imported pharmaceuticals could reach 250 percent, while adding that he plans for new duties on foreign semiconductors soon. "We'll be putting (an) initially small tariff on pharmaceuticals, but in one year, one-and-a-half years, maximum, it's going to go to 150 percent," Trump said. "And then it's going to go to 250 percent because we want pharmaceuticals made in our country." Trump also said that Washington will be announcing tariffs "within the next week or so." He added: "We're going to be announcing on semiconductors and chips." - Concern for US economy - Trump has taken aim at products from different countries with varying tariff rates after imposing a 10-percent levy on almost all trading partners in April -- with excluded products targeted by sector. While Swiss leaders are seeking to stave off a US tariff hike to 39 percent come Thursday -- which excludes sectors like pharma -- Trump's plans for a steep pharma levy will likely be a point of contention in any talks. Pharmaceuticals represented 60 percent of Swiss goods exports to the United States last year. Besides probing pharmaceuticals and chips imports, Trump has already imposed steep duties of 50 percent on imports of steel and aluminum, alongside lower levels on autos and parts. In the same CNBC interview, Trump said he expects to raise the US tariff on Indian imports "very substantially over the next 24 hours" due to the country's purchases of Russian oil. This is a key revenue source for Moscow's military offensive on Ukraine. His pressure on India comes after signaling fresh sanctions on Moscow if it did not make progress by Friday towards a peace deal with Kyiv, more than three years since Russia's invasion. Moscow is anticipating talks this week with the US leader's special envoy Steve Witkoff, and the Kremlin has criticized Trump's threat of raising tariffs on Indian goods. Weak employment data last week pointed to challenges for the US economy as companies take a cautious approach in hiring and investment while grappling with Trump's radical -- and rapidly changing -- tariffs policy. The tariffs are a demonstration of raw economic power that Trump sees as putting US exporters in a stronger position while encouraging domestic manufacturing by keeping out foreign imports. But the approach has raised fears of inflation and other economic fallout in the world's biggest economy.
