According to Bloomberg, US President Trump said on February 9 local time that he plans to impose a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum products imported to the United States. This move is seen as another major upgrade of U.S. trade policy, which may have far-reaching impacts on global supply chains and the domestic energy industry in the United States.
At present, the specific time of the new tariffs to take effect has not been clarified. It is worth noting that it is unclear whether Mexico and Canada, as important metal suppliers in the United States, will still be exempted this time. Previously, Trump postponed import tariffs on Canadian and Mexican products, which were originally scheduled to take effect on February 1, to March in exchange for a commitment from Mexico and Canada to strengthen border control.
Trump also said that it will announce “reciprocal tariff measures” this week for “some countries that impose unfair tariffs on the United States”, but such tariffs will not take effect immediately with the announcement and may be postponed until Tuesday or Wednesday. .
The analysis pointed out that the new round of tariffs may have an impact on the US energy industry, especially American wind power developers and oil drilling companies that rely on imported special steel. Some oil companies have successfully applied for tariff exemptions during Trump’s first term, but it is still unclear whether the exemption policy will continue. The action continues Trump’s consistent trade protectionist stance. In 2018, its government imposed 25% and 10% tariffs on steel and aluminum on the grounds of “national security”, triggering countermeasures from many countries and leading to global trade frictions.
As the new tariffs are announced, Sino-US trade relations are also at a sensitive node. The Trump administration has recently imposed 10% tariffs on products imported from China, while China has announced that it will implement “more precise” countermeasures on US$14 billion worth of products imported from the United States starting from February 10. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Trump’s “emergency call” with Chinese President Xi Jinping is being arranged, and whether the two sides can reach an agreement before the deadline has attracted much attention.
Trump has made import tariffs a central goal of reshaping the U.S. economy, narrowing the trade deficit and finding new sources of income to help achieve his tax agenda. Despite Trump’s claim that tariffs will “protect the U.S. industry, critics warn that the move could lead to higher domestic production costs in the United States and exacerbate global trade tensions. Similar policies in 2018 caused the Dow Jones Index to plummet by more than 500 points in a single day, and the market response remains to be seen. Analysts point out that Trump’s tariff policy may be closely linked to his U.S. domestic political agenda, but the long-term economic costs may far exceed short-term gains.
However, the scale of Trump’s overall tariff target remains unclear. Trump also said he would impose import duties on other products, including medicines, oil and semiconductors, and said he is considering import duties on the EU. At present, the US government has not yet announced the details of the tariff exemption mechanism, and the industry calls on the US government to clarify the implementation details as soon as possible to reduce uncertainty.