Canadian Aluminum to Face 10% Tariffs Again on Aug. 16, But Only Unwrought and Non-Alloyed
The White House issued a proclamation Aug. 6 reimposing 10% tariffs on most Canadian aluminum imports starting Aug. 16. The tariffs will apply only to "imports of non-alloyed unwrought aluminum provided for in subheading 7601.10," which makes up the majority of U.S. aluminum imports from Canada, said the proclamation.
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“Canada was taking advantage of us, as usual,” said President Donald Trump, explaining why the proclamation was necessary. “The aluminum industry was being decimated by Canada.” He said Canada has been flooding the U.S. with imports, and that U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told him that the return of the 10% tariff was “absolutely necessary” to preserve the U.S. aluminum industry. He was speaking Aug. 6 at a Whirlpool plant in Clyde, Ohio.
The Aluminum Association, before the announcement, said that imports of primary aluminum from Canada declined 2.6% from May to June, and that imports of the same product were nearly 5% lower in the first half of 2020 than in the same period of 2017.
The proclamation says imports of non-alloyed unwrought aluminum from Canada increased 87% from June 2019 through May 2020. The proclamation says that this category is 59% of all Canadian aluminum exports to the U.S.
"The United States will monitor for import surges of articles that continue to be exempt from the tariff proclaimed in Proclamation 9704, to ensure that exports of non-alloyed unwrought aluminum to the United States are not simply reoriented into increased exports of alloyed, further processed, or wrought aluminum articles," the proclamation said.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reacted by saying, “The administration’s move to re-impose tariffs on aluminum from Canada is a step in the wrong direction.
“These tariffs will raise costs for American manufacturers, are opposed by most U.S. aluminum producers, and will draw retaliation against U.S. exports -- just as they did before,” the Chamber said. “We urge the administration to reconsider this move.”