Latest news with #Section232
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
2 hours ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Indian steel companies eye robust growth in FY26 on improved spreads
Indian steelmakers are eyeing stronger growth this financial year (FY26), supported by the recent safeguard duty on imports and improved steel spreads. However, China remains a wildcard. Steel imports started dropping in the lead-up to the government's provisional safeguard duty – a measure aimed at protecting domestic producers from a flood of cheap imports. Data from price reporting and market intelligence firm BigMint showed that India's steel imports fell 21 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in January-April 2025 to 2.85 million tonnes (mt). Imports from China stood at 1.11 mt in the same period previous year, which reduced to 0.50 mt during January-April 2025. This reflected on steel prices. The monthly average for hot rolled coil (HRC) ex-Mumbai increased from ₹46,878 per tonne in December to ₹52,033 per tonne in April. It was at the same level in May 2025, while the average in May 2024 was at ₹54,100 per tonne. Post-safeguard steel prices have not increased to the extent that was anticipated. 'There are concerns around Chinese steel prices, which are trending down. Moreover, it continues to push volumes into the rest of the world,' said Ranjan Dhar, director and vice-president – sales and marketing at ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India (AM/NS India) US President Donald Trump on Friday announced that he would be increasing tariffs on steel and aluminium to 50 per cent from 25 per cent. According to a report by Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), India exported $4.56 billion worth of iron, steel, and aluminium products to the US in FY25 with key categories, including $587.5 million in iron and steel, $3.1 billion in iron or steel articles, and $860 million in aluminium and related articles. 'These exports are now exposed to sharply higher US tariffs threatening the profitability of Indian producers and exporters,' the report mentioned. Dhar said that there would be no direct impact on Indian carbon steel, which already faces anti-dumping duty (ADD), countervailing duty (CVD), and Section 232. 'It's clear that in the era of trade barriers, if any country remains open or does not have adequate protection, its domestic industry will be impacted.' 'Chinese exports are still very high and a big concern for everyone. They should voluntarily regulate production close to their domestic consumption,' he added. 'The latest US announcement may result in a higher steel diversion risk into India. It will also stop small volume exports to the US,' said another major carbon steel producer. On April 21, 2025, following an investigation and recommendation by the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), the Indian government imposed a 12 per cent provisional safeguard duty following a surge in low-cost imports. The safeguard duty was expected to impose a $60 per tonne additional levy for import of HRC. But falling Chinese steel prices and rupee strengthening have taken away half of its benefit,' said Ritabrata Ghosh, vice-president, Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency (Icra). According to a media report, the government is said to review the possibility of increasing the safeguard duty to 24 per cent. The industry demand was 25 per cent. Between February and May 2025, Chinese HRC prices have decreased from $470 a tonne to $455 per tonne. 'This can weigh on Indian steel prices going forward, even as the first quarter of 2025-26 (Q1FY26) is expected to be strong on the back of higher steel prices and lower coking coal prices,' Ghosh said. Steel prices started appreciating from January, but Q4FY25 is believed not to have captured it in full. 'The pricing environment has improved from Q4FY25 to Q1FY26. I see a potential improvement of about ₹3,250 per tonne on an average basis from the lows seen in the past few months,' said Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Jayant Acharya, JSW Steel joint. 'We should continue to watch China. Their exports are still high, at about 10 mt a month. In Q4, we have seen a drop in Chinese imports into India, primarily in anticipation of safeguard duty and prices also hitting a low,' he added. According to Acharya, India is vulnerable given the strong domestic demand and changing global tariff dynamics. 'We will have to remain vigilant and proactive to implement necessary trade measures in time.' Sehul Bhatt, director- Research, Crisil Intelligence, said: Chinese finished steelmakers have pumped up exports in the recent past, to 111 mt in calendar 2024 from 94 mt in 2023 and 64 mt in 2022. 'The trend continued in Q1FY26 with export volume rising 6.4 per cent Y-o-Y.' One of the reasons behind limited export opportunities for domestic steelmakers is competitively priced Chinese products. However, given that 97 per cent of India's steel demand is met locally, the domestic steel sector is relatively insulated from tariff changes abroad, he added. Crisil Intelligence has forecasted domestic steel demand to grow 9-10 per cent Y-o-Y in FY26.
Indian Express
a day ago
- Business
- Indian Express
Trump doubles steel, aluminium tariffs to 50% from June 4, exporters say ‘complicates trade talks'
US steel tariffs update: US PRESIDENT Donald Trump Friday announced he would double import tariffs on steel to 50 per cent, a move that was termed 'unfortunate' by India's exporters, who said this made trade talks 'much more difficult and complicated'. Addressing a rally at a US steel plant in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, Trump said Friday, the sharp hike in tariffs on steel from 25 per cent to 50 per cent will 'even further secure the steel industry in the United States'. 'Nobody's going to get around that,' he said. Later in a social media post, Trump said, 'It is my great honour to raise the tariffs on steel and aluminium from 25% to 50%, effective Wednesday, June 4th. Our steel and aluminium industries are coming back like never before. This will be yet another BIG jolt of great news for our wonderful steel and aluminium workers. Make America Great Again.' This fresh tariff hike follows a similar increase earlier this year, when Trump raised tariffs on aluminium and steel to 25 per cent. Exporters had told the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry that exports worth $5 billion were affected. 'It's unfortunate that, while bilateral trade agreement (BTA) negotiations are ongoing, such unilateral tariff hikes are being introduced. It only makes the work of negotiators much more difficult and complicated. This will definitely impact engineering exports, which currently stand at around $5 billion under this category,' said Pankaj Chadha, Chairman, Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) India. 'We urge that, since the UK has been granted exemption from Section 232, India should also be extended a similar exemption, possibly under tariff rate quota (TRQ) restrictions.' Federation of Indian Exporters' Organisation President S C Ralhan said the proposed tariff hike will have a significant bearing on steel exports, especially in semi-finished and finished categories like stainless steel pipes, structural steel components, and automotive steel parts. 'These products are part of India's growing engineering exports, and higher duties could erode our price competitiveness in the American market,' he said. The tariff hike has been implemented under Section 232 of the US Trade Expansion Act of 1962, a law that allows the President to impose tariffs or other trade restrictions if imports are deemed a threat to national security. Trump first invoked this provision in 2018 to impose a 25 per cent tariff on steel and 10 per cent on aluminium. US tariffs on steel and aluminium tend to trigger ripple effects globally. During Trump's first term, the European Union imposed restrictions on Indian exporters in response to similar US measures. Ajay Srivastava, head of think tank GTRI, said, 'The economic impact of these higher tariffs will be significant. US steel prices are already high, at around $984 per metric tonne — far above European prices at $690 and Chinese prices at $392.' He said this is expected to push prices in the US to around $1,180 per metric tonne, squeezing domestic industries such as automotive, construction, and manufacturing that depend heavily on steel and aluminium as key inputs. 'Sectors may face hundreds of dollars in additional material costs per tonne, driving up prices, reducing competitiveness, and risking job losses or inflationary pressures,' he said. 'For India, the consequences are direct. In FY2025, India exported $4.56 billion worth of iron, steel, and aluminium products to the US, including $587.5 million in iron and steel, $3.1 billion in articles of iron or steel, and $860 million in aluminium and related articles. These exports are now exposed to sharply higher US tariffs, threatening the profitability of Indian producers and exporters,' GTRI said in a note following Trump's announcement. India has already issued a formal notice at the World Trade Organization (WTO) signalling its intention to impose retaliatory tariffs on US goods in response to the earlier steel tariffs. With Trump now doubling the duties, it remains to be seen whether India will proceed with retaliation, potentially by increasing tariffs on select US exports within a month. Ravi Dutta Mishra is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, covering policy issues related to trade, commerce, and banking. He has over five years of experience and has previously worked with Mint, CNBC-TV18, and other news outlets. ... Read More
The Hindu
a day ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Indian steel, aluminium exports to take a hit with as Trump mulls doubling tariff to 50%
India's exports of steel and aluminium and their products are expected to take $1 billion hit with the proposed fresh tariff hikes by the U.S.. The proposed tariff is double the current 25% tariff under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act. Pankaj Chadha, chairman of EEPC India, told The Hindu that annual exports of steel, aluminium and products are worth nearly $5 billion. 'We have barely settled down after the March announcement of sectoral tariff. How can we do business with such uncertainty in tariffs. The US sources castings, fasteners, holdings, etc. We (Indian exporters) need to diversify to other markets,' he said. The EEPC India will pursue with the Indian government to get exemption from Section 232, similar to the exemption the U.S. has given to the U.K. According to the GTRI, the U.S. steel prices are already high, at around $984 per tonne compared with European prices at $690 and Chinese prices at $392. The doubling of tariffs is expected to push U.S. prices to about $1,180, hitting the U.S. domestic industries in sectors such as automobiles, construction, and manufacturing. For India, the consequences are direct. In FY 2025, India exported $4.56 billion worth of iron, steel, and aluminium products to the U.S., with key categories including $587.5 million in iron and steel, $3.1 billion in articles of iron or steel, and $860 million in aluminium and related articles. India has issued a formal notice at the World Trade Organization signalling its intention to impose retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods in response to the earlier steel tariffs. With the US now planning to double the tariffs, it remains to be seen whether India will carry out the retaliation, by increasing tariffs on certain U.S. exports within a month. India imports nearly $ 2 billion worth iron, steel, aluminium and their goods from the U.S., said the GTRI. S C Ralhan, president of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations, said in a press release that the proposed tariff will have significant bearing especially on semi-finished and finished categories such as stainless steel pipes, structural steel components, and automotive steel parts. These products are part of India's growing engineering exports, and higher duties could erode India's price competitiveness in the U.S. market. Such sharp increases in tariffs send discouraging signals to global trade and manufacturing supply chains. 'We urge the Government to take up the issue at the bilateral level to ensure that Indian exporters are not unfairly disadvantaged as 25% additional duty will be a huge burden, which is difficult to be absorbed by the exporter/importer.'
Indian Express
a day ago
- Business
- Indian Express
India gets breather ahead of trade talks with US; Pakistan's shift to crypto raises concerns; foreign students in US under duress
US court rulings on Trump's tariffs give India some breathing space; Pak's pivot to crypto raises concerns over possible misuse of the digital currency to fund terror; foreign students face uncertainty amid crackdowns on US varsities; Gaza's entire population faces catastrophic hunger as Hamas reviews US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire; Trump says he told Israel to hold off on any strike against Iran, and Russia, Ukraine to hold second direct peace talks – here is weekly roundup of global news. As India braces to finalise a trade agreement with the US trade negotiators scheduled to arrive here for talks on June 5 and 6, two court rulings this week against Donald Trump's sweeping 'Liberation Day' tariffs added a twist to the bilateral trade negotiations. On Wednesday, the US Court of International Trade deemed Trump's sweeping tariffs illegal, determining that he overstepped his authority by invoking the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose these tariffs on goods imported into America from almost every nation. A day later, an appeals court – the Federal Circuit Court in Washington, DC that has jurisdiction over the trade court – temporarily halted the decision, which means the levies are back for now and the case will probably end up in the Supreme Court. However, the Trump administration has also slapped other sector-specific tariffs such as on steel, aluminium, cars and car parts under a different statute known as Section 232. There are chances that provisions such as Section 232 would now be used to impose such sector-specific tariffs on countries, especially if the Federal Circuit Court were to also rule against the IEEPA levies. But until the final word on the matter, India has some breathing room in its ongoing trade talks, particularly with the US's demand seeking access to several sectors that traditionally enjoy high protection, such as agriculture, automobiles, and alcoholic beverages. Amid concerns over the impact of trade deals with foreign countries on India's agricultural export, import and the surplus, especially with the US and EU seeking greater market access for their agricultural products, data highlights significant trends. India's agriculture exports increased from $43.3 billion in 2013-14 to $51.9 billion in 2024-25. Meanwhile, imports have shown steadier expansion from $15.5 billion in 2013-14 to an all-time high of $38.5 billion in 2024-25, working out to 148%. In the meantime, India's goods exports worth at least $775 million to the UK continue to face the risk of higher duties under its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), despite the conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) earlier this month. UK's CBAM was not part of the FTA, but it will initially target carbon-intensive products such as iron, steel, aluminium, fertilisers, hydrogen, ceramics, glass and cement, with scope to expand the list in future. That apart, a dramatic element in the unfolding tariff saga was the claim by the Trump administration that the President averted a full-scale war and brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan by offering both nations trading access with the US – a claim categorically denied by India. The simultaneous revelation of an agreement that Pakistan inked with World Liberty Financial Inc (WLFI), a crypto firm majority-owned by Trump and his family, prompted experts like C Raja Mohan to ask India to reflect on its crypto strategy. The shady deal has raised concerns on various fronts, such as: — As of May 6, when India launched Operation Sindoor in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, the WLFI was sitting on a Senate panel's request, seeking details of its dealings with Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. — Trump's dual role, as WLFI promoter and the self-proclaimed political broker (in the recent India-Pakistan military conflict), has raised concerns over conflict of interest. — Although the details of the agreement are yet to emerge, it includes grand plans to use blockchain technology to boost financial inclusion and facilitate remittances for cash-strapped Pakistan, with Bilal bin Saqib, the head of the Pakistan Crypto Council, calling his country and Bitcoin as 'victims of bad PR'. — As Pakistan turns to cryptocurrency to solve its economic challenges, India is advised to pay close attention amid concerns over the 'possible misuse of these digital currencies not controlled by any central bank to fund terror and launder money across borders'. All the while, India's multiple delegations are fanning out to carry its anti-terror message worldwide. On Sunday, a team led by senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor reached the US, where he underlined the need for a 'new normal' in the face of the Pahalgam terror attack. Another team, led by BJP MP Baijayant Panda, arrived in Kuwait, while the delegation led by Sanjay Jha engaged with the Indian diaspora in South Korea. However, as the Indian delegation landed in the US, concerns were growing over the Trump administration's hardline immigration stance. Over 3,31,000 Indian students studying in the US are caught in the crosshairs as the Trump administration targeted universities. This week, it directed federal agencies to terminate an estimated $100 million worth of remaining contracts with Harvard by June 6, as part of its broader efforts to reform institutions like Harvard and Columbia. Foreign students, including Indians, enrolled at Harvard are under duress amid the unfolding crisis as the federal Joint Task Force to Combat Antisemitism warned that if Harvard wishes to continue receiving federal support, it must 'commit to meaningful change'. The university has filed a lawsuit challenging the funding freeze and a related move to revoke its ability to enrol foreign students. A diplomatic cable issued on Tuesday added to the pressure in which the State Department asked its embassies and consular sections to halt new interviews, which began earlier this month, as it weighs requiring all students to undergo social media vetting as part of their application process. This move comes despite the visa application (DS-160) already requiring applicants to disclose their social media platform and identifiers. The US Embassy in India also issued a warning to Indian students studying in the US: 'If you drop out, skip classes, or leave your program of study without informing your school, your student visa may be revoked, and you may lose eligibility for future US visas.' The situation has unsettled international students, who contribute nearly $43.8 billion annually to the US economy, according to NAFSA. These students are often top performers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Hence, the pause, if implemented, will be a significant blow to US universities, whose annual international student intake hovers around the 1 million mark (1.12 million in the 2023-24 academic year). The ongoing crackdown has begun as a campaign pitch to 'reform' elite universities, including Harvard and Columbia, and has now expanded its scope. The US administration is planning to cancel all remaining contracts with Harvard University, worth about $100 million, while finding 'alternative vendors' for future services. Contracts with around nine federal agencies would be affected, which would also affect researchers at some of India's leading medical colleges and scientific institutions. In April, the federal government froze more than $2 billion in grants and contracts with Harvard, citing non-compliance with requests to modify hiring and admissions policies, dismantle diversity-equity-inclusion (DEI) programmes, and conduct ideological vetting of international students. Harvard has filed a lawsuit challenging both the funding freeze and the move to revoke its ability to enrol foreign students. These developments in the US come amid growing global instability, including in Gaza, which the UN has described as the 'hungriest place on Earth'. The war-riven enclave's 2.3 million people are facing 'catastrophic hunger', as Hamas is reviewing a new ceasefire proposal. As the UN and European countries mounted pressure on Israel to end the war and its 11-week-long blockade on Gaza, a limited amount of aid began entering the besieged enclave under the control of a new NGO backed by Israel and the US – the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF). However, 20 people were shot by Israeli troops at a GHF aid distribution point on Friday as they desperately tried to get food, Al Jazeera reported, citing sources at Gaza hospitals. While Arab states rejected the new aid system as illegal, the UN and international aid groups also refused to work with the GHF, saying, according to Reuters, it is not neutral and has a distribution model that forces the displacement of Palestinians. Meanwhile, Hamas is reviewing a US proposal for a 60-day ceasefire that has reportedly been accepted by Israel. According to Reuters, the ceasefire would see humanitarian aid delivered by the UN, the Red Crescent and other agreed channels; and the release of 28 Israeli hostages – alive and dead – in exchange for the release of 1,236 Palestinian prisoners and the remains of 180 dead Palestinians. Despite these efforts, hope for peace for the Palestinians remains elusive as Israel blocked a planned meeting of Arab ministers in the Palestinian administrative capital of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Reuters cited an Israeli official as saying that the 'provocative meeting' intended to discuss the establishment of a Palestinian state and that 'such a state would undoubtedly become a terrorist state in the heart of the land of Israel'. The move comes ahead of an international conference, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, due to be held in New York on June 17-20 to discuss the issue of Palestinian statehood. French President Emmanuel Macron said on Friday that recognising a Palestinian state was not only a 'moral duty but a political necessity'. After several rounds of Iran nuclear talks, US President Trump this week said that he told Israel to hold off on any strike against Tehran as it 'would be inappropriate to do right now because we're very close to a solution'. 'I want it (nuclear agreement) very strong where we can go in with inspectors, we can take whatever we want, we can blow up whatever we want, but nobody getting killed. We can blow up a lab, but nobody is gonna be in a lab, as opposed to everybody being in the lab and blowing it up,' Trump told reporters on Wednesday at the White House. However, Iran retaliated in equal measure, warning that Trump's threat to destroy its nuclear facilities is a clear red line and will have severe consequences, the semi-official Fars News Agency reported on Friday. The Islamic Republic said that 'if the US seeks a diplomatic solution, it must abandon the language of threats and sanctions', adding that such threats 'are open hostility against Iran's national interests', Reuters reported, citing an unnamed Iranian official. Israel has been threatening a bombardment of Iranian nuclear facilities. According to a Reuters report, which cited Gulf sources, Saudi Arabia's defence minister, Prince Khalid bin Salman, visited Tehran in April and delivered a blunt message to Iranian officials: take Trump's offer to negotiate a nuclear agreement seriously because it presents a way to avoid the risk of war with Israel. Iran and the US have held five rounds of nuclear talks in Oman and Italy, with the last round being described by Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi as 'one of the most professional rounds of negotiations' yet. Days after the first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine failed to yield a ceasefire, the two sides will resume direct peace talks in Istanbul on Monday, but Kyiv insisted that Moscow provide a promised memorandum on ending the more than three-year war before they sit down to negotiate. Questioning Russia's commitment to peace, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, 'For a meeting to be meaningful, its agenda must be clear, and the negotiations must be properly prepared.' 'Unfortunately, Russia is doing everything it can to ensure that the next potential meeting brings no results,' he wrote on X on Friday after hosting Turkey's foreign minister for talks in Kyiv. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday publicly invited Ukraine to hold direct negotiations with Moscow. In a video statement, Lavrov said Russia would use Monday's meeting to deliver an outline of Moscow's position on 'reliably overcoming' what it calls the root causes of the war, The Associated Press reported. Russia and Ukraine held their first direct peace talks in three years in Istanbul on May 16, which resulted in no significant breakthrough except an agreement on the largest prisoner exchange of the war. It was carried out last weekend and freed 1,000 captives on each side. Why has a crypto agreement between Pakistan and World Liberty Financial Inc (WLFI), a firm majority-owned by Donald Trump and his family, has alarmed India? Evaluate. Comment on India's diplomatic push post-Pahalgam attack, with delegations spanning different countries world over to shape narratives on terrorism. How could the ongoing US crackdown on universities and student visas affect its global standing as a destination for higher education? In what ways might India need to recalibrate its student and research diplomacy with the US in light of these emerging restrictions? Why did the UN and other international aid groups refuse to cooperate with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) backed by the US and Israel? Does the GHF's distribution model conflict with international humanitarian principles? Send your feedback and ideas to
The Advertiser
a day ago
- Business
- The Advertiser
Trump vows to double steel tariffs to 50 per cent
US President Donald Trump plans to increase tariffs on imported steel and aluminium to 50 per cent from 25 per cent, ratcheting up pressure on global steel producers and deepening his trade war. "We are going to be imposing a 25 per cent increase. We're going to bring it from 25 per cent to 50 per cent - the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States," he said at a rally in Pennsylvania on Friday. Trump announced the higher tariffs just outside Pittsburgh, where he was talking up an agreement between Nippon Steel and US Steel. Trump said the $US14.9 billion ($A23.2 billion) deal, like the tariff increase, will help keep jobs for steel workers in the US. He later posted on social media that the increased tariff would also apply to aluminium products and that it would take effect on Wednesday. Shares of steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc surged 26 per cent after the market close as investors bet the new levies would help its profits. The doubling of steel and aluminium levies intensifies Trump's global trade war and came just hours after he accused China of violating an agreement with the US to mutually roll back tariffs and trade restrictions for critical minerals. Canada's Chamber of Commerce quickly denounced the tariff hike as "antithetical to North American economic security". "Unwinding the efficient, competitive and reliable cross-border supply chains like we have in steel and aluminium comes at a great cost to both countries," Candace Laing, president of the chamber, said in a statement. Australia's government also condemned the tariff increase as "unjustified and not the act of a friend". Australia, a key US security ally in the Indo-Pacific, would "continue to engage and advocate strongly for the removal of the tariffs", Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement. Trump spoke at US Steel's Mon Valley Works, a steel plant that symbolises both the one-time strength and the decline of US manufacturing power as the Rust Belt's steel plants and factories lost business to international rivals. Closely contested Pennsylvania is also a major prize in presidential elections. The US is the world's largest steel importer, excluding the European Union, with a total of 26.2 million tons of imported steel in 2024, according to the Department of Commerce. As a result, the new tariffs will likely increase steel prices across the board, hitting industry and consumers alike. Steel and aluminium tariffs were among the earliest put into effect by Trump when he returned to office in January. The tariffs of 25 per cent on most steel and aluminium imported to the US went into effect in March, and he had briefly threatened a 50 per cent levy on Canadian steel but ultimately backed off. Under the so-called Section 232 national security authority, the import taxes include both raw metals and derivative products as diverse as stainless steel sinks, gas ranges, air conditioner evaporator coils, horseshoes, aluminium frying pans and steel door hinges. The 2024 import value for the 289 product categories came to $US147.3 billion with nearly two-thirds aluminium and one-third steel, according to Census Bureau data retrieved through the US International Trade Commission's Data Web system. By contrast, Trump's first two rounds of punitive tariffs on Chinese industrial goods in 2018 during his first term totalled $US50 billion in annual import value. US President Donald Trump plans to increase tariffs on imported steel and aluminium to 50 per cent from 25 per cent, ratcheting up pressure on global steel producers and deepening his trade war. "We are going to be imposing a 25 per cent increase. We're going to bring it from 25 per cent to 50 per cent - the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States," he said at a rally in Pennsylvania on Friday. Trump announced the higher tariffs just outside Pittsburgh, where he was talking up an agreement between Nippon Steel and US Steel. Trump said the $US14.9 billion ($A23.2 billion) deal, like the tariff increase, will help keep jobs for steel workers in the US. He later posted on social media that the increased tariff would also apply to aluminium products and that it would take effect on Wednesday. Shares of steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc surged 26 per cent after the market close as investors bet the new levies would help its profits. The doubling of steel and aluminium levies intensifies Trump's global trade war and came just hours after he accused China of violating an agreement with the US to mutually roll back tariffs and trade restrictions for critical minerals. Canada's Chamber of Commerce quickly denounced the tariff hike as "antithetical to North American economic security". "Unwinding the efficient, competitive and reliable cross-border supply chains like we have in steel and aluminium comes at a great cost to both countries," Candace Laing, president of the chamber, said in a statement. Australia's government also condemned the tariff increase as "unjustified and not the act of a friend". Australia, a key US security ally in the Indo-Pacific, would "continue to engage and advocate strongly for the removal of the tariffs", Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement. Trump spoke at US Steel's Mon Valley Works, a steel plant that symbolises both the one-time strength and the decline of US manufacturing power as the Rust Belt's steel plants and factories lost business to international rivals. Closely contested Pennsylvania is also a major prize in presidential elections. The US is the world's largest steel importer, excluding the European Union, with a total of 26.2 million tons of imported steel in 2024, according to the Department of Commerce. As a result, the new tariffs will likely increase steel prices across the board, hitting industry and consumers alike. Steel and aluminium tariffs were among the earliest put into effect by Trump when he returned to office in January. The tariffs of 25 per cent on most steel and aluminium imported to the US went into effect in March, and he had briefly threatened a 50 per cent levy on Canadian steel but ultimately backed off. Under the so-called Section 232 national security authority, the import taxes include both raw metals and derivative products as diverse as stainless steel sinks, gas ranges, air conditioner evaporator coils, horseshoes, aluminium frying pans and steel door hinges. The 2024 import value for the 289 product categories came to $US147.3 billion with nearly two-thirds aluminium and one-third steel, according to Census Bureau data retrieved through the US International Trade Commission's Data Web system. By contrast, Trump's first two rounds of punitive tariffs on Chinese industrial goods in 2018 during his first term totalled $US50 billion in annual import value. US President Donald Trump plans to increase tariffs on imported steel and aluminium to 50 per cent from 25 per cent, ratcheting up pressure on global steel producers and deepening his trade war. "We are going to be imposing a 25 per cent increase. We're going to bring it from 25 per cent to 50 per cent - the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States," he said at a rally in Pennsylvania on Friday. Trump announced the higher tariffs just outside Pittsburgh, where he was talking up an agreement between Nippon Steel and US Steel. Trump said the $US14.9 billion ($A23.2 billion) deal, like the tariff increase, will help keep jobs for steel workers in the US. He later posted on social media that the increased tariff would also apply to aluminium products and that it would take effect on Wednesday. Shares of steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc surged 26 per cent after the market close as investors bet the new levies would help its profits. The doubling of steel and aluminium levies intensifies Trump's global trade war and came just hours after he accused China of violating an agreement with the US to mutually roll back tariffs and trade restrictions for critical minerals. Canada's Chamber of Commerce quickly denounced the tariff hike as "antithetical to North American economic security". "Unwinding the efficient, competitive and reliable cross-border supply chains like we have in steel and aluminium comes at a great cost to both countries," Candace Laing, president of the chamber, said in a statement. Australia's government also condemned the tariff increase as "unjustified and not the act of a friend". Australia, a key US security ally in the Indo-Pacific, would "continue to engage and advocate strongly for the removal of the tariffs", Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement. Trump spoke at US Steel's Mon Valley Works, a steel plant that symbolises both the one-time strength and the decline of US manufacturing power as the Rust Belt's steel plants and factories lost business to international rivals. Closely contested Pennsylvania is also a major prize in presidential elections. The US is the world's largest steel importer, excluding the European Union, with a total of 26.2 million tons of imported steel in 2024, according to the Department of Commerce. As a result, the new tariffs will likely increase steel prices across the board, hitting industry and consumers alike. Steel and aluminium tariffs were among the earliest put into effect by Trump when he returned to office in January. The tariffs of 25 per cent on most steel and aluminium imported to the US went into effect in March, and he had briefly threatened a 50 per cent levy on Canadian steel but ultimately backed off. Under the so-called Section 232 national security authority, the import taxes include both raw metals and derivative products as diverse as stainless steel sinks, gas ranges, air conditioner evaporator coils, horseshoes, aluminium frying pans and steel door hinges. The 2024 import value for the 289 product categories came to $US147.3 billion with nearly two-thirds aluminium and one-third steel, according to Census Bureau data retrieved through the US International Trade Commission's Data Web system. By contrast, Trump's first two rounds of punitive tariffs on Chinese industrial goods in 2018 during his first term totalled $US50 billion in annual import value. US President Donald Trump plans to increase tariffs on imported steel and aluminium to 50 per cent from 25 per cent, ratcheting up pressure on global steel producers and deepening his trade war. "We are going to be imposing a 25 per cent increase. We're going to bring it from 25 per cent to 50 per cent - the tariffs on steel into the United States of America, which will even further secure the steel industry in the United States," he said at a rally in Pennsylvania on Friday. Trump announced the higher tariffs just outside Pittsburgh, where he was talking up an agreement between Nippon Steel and US Steel. Trump said the $US14.9 billion ($A23.2 billion) deal, like the tariff increase, will help keep jobs for steel workers in the US. He later posted on social media that the increased tariff would also apply to aluminium products and that it would take effect on Wednesday. Shares of steelmaker Cleveland-Cliffs Inc surged 26 per cent after the market close as investors bet the new levies would help its profits. The doubling of steel and aluminium levies intensifies Trump's global trade war and came just hours after he accused China of violating an agreement with the US to mutually roll back tariffs and trade restrictions for critical minerals. Canada's Chamber of Commerce quickly denounced the tariff hike as "antithetical to North American economic security". "Unwinding the efficient, competitive and reliable cross-border supply chains like we have in steel and aluminium comes at a great cost to both countries," Candace Laing, president of the chamber, said in a statement. Australia's government also condemned the tariff increase as "unjustified and not the act of a friend". Australia, a key US security ally in the Indo-Pacific, would "continue to engage and advocate strongly for the removal of the tariffs", Trade Minister Don Farrell said in a statement. Trump spoke at US Steel's Mon Valley Works, a steel plant that symbolises both the one-time strength and the decline of US manufacturing power as the Rust Belt's steel plants and factories lost business to international rivals. Closely contested Pennsylvania is also a major prize in presidential elections. The US is the world's largest steel importer, excluding the European Union, with a total of 26.2 million tons of imported steel in 2024, according to the Department of Commerce. As a result, the new tariffs will likely increase steel prices across the board, hitting industry and consumers alike. Steel and aluminium tariffs were among the earliest put into effect by Trump when he returned to office in January. The tariffs of 25 per cent on most steel and aluminium imported to the US went into effect in March, and he had briefly threatened a 50 per cent levy on Canadian steel but ultimately backed off. Under the so-called Section 232 national security authority, the import taxes include both raw metals and derivative products as diverse as stainless steel sinks, gas ranges, air conditioner evaporator coils, horseshoes, aluminium frying pans and steel door hinges. The 2024 import value for the 289 product categories came to $US147.3 billion with nearly two-thirds aluminium and one-third steel, according to Census Bureau data retrieved through the US International Trade Commission's Data Web system. By contrast, Trump's first two rounds of punitive tariffs on Chinese industrial goods in 2018 during his first term totalled $US50 billion in annual import value.
