Grassley in Dark on Plans for Section 232 on Canadian Aluminum
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said during a conference call with reporters July 17 he doesn't know if the U.S. trade representative and Canada have resolved their differences over Canadian aluminum imports. The USTR has said that he was consulting with Canada about a surge of imports. Some news outlets reported three weeks ago that he would re-impose 10% tariffs on aluminum, but so far that has not happened (see 2006250048).
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with President Donald Trump about aluminum trade between their two countries earlier this week. Grassley said that he has not spoken with the USTR on that topic in recent weeks. He said had a long conversation with Chrystia Freeland, the deputy prime minister of Canada, and talked about aluminum. He said he asked her to report back after she talked with the USTR, but she hasn't.
Grassley was a major voice for rolling back the Section 232 tariffs on Canadian and Mexican metals in 2019, but recently said he would be all right with re-imposition if consultations didn't work (see 2006300036). Canada has said it can retaliate on any article containing aluminum if the tariffs return.