Trump Rolls Out Steel, Aluminum Tariffs

Date: 09 March 2018 - 21:58

News ID: ۵۰۹۱۹

WASHINGTON (Dispatches) – U.S. President Donald Trump has officially announced steep tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, but exempted Canada and Mexico.
Defying his own party and delivering on a campaign promise to fight unfair practices by America’s trading partners, Trump signed paperwork enacting tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum during a ceremony at the White House.
"Today, I am defending America’s national security by placing tariffs on foreign imports of steel and aluminum," said Trump who was flanked by steel and aluminum workers.
Trump said the American steel and aluminum industry has been "ravaged by aggressive foreign trade practices.”
He described the dumping of steel and aluminum in the United States as "an assault on our country.”
"If you don’t want to pay tax, bring your plant to the USA,” he said.
The president temporarily exempted the countries from the tariffs  that "treat us fairly on trade,” a move aimed at putting pressure on Canada and Mexico to give ground in separate talks on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Trump has separately discussed withdrawing the United States from NAFTA.
He has also asked the European Union to offer concessions, arguing that it treated American cars unfairly and has threatened to hike tariffs on auto imports from Europe.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) director-general has called on Trump not to impose hefty tariffs on aluminum and steel exports, saying it could cause a deep global recession.
"An eye for an eye will leave us all blind, and the world in deep recession," Roberto Azevedo told members of his organization on Monday. We "must make every effort to avoid the fall of the first dominoes."
European Union's Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom on Thursday night said the EU should be excluded from the new U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum imports.
She made the remarks in a tweet after U.S. President Donald Trump signed proclamations on imposing a 25-percent tariff on imported steel and 10-percent on aluminum amid global dissent.
"The EU is a close ally of the U.S. and we continue to be of the view that the EU should be excluded from these measures," Malmstrom tweeted.
The EU's top trade representative said she would seek clarification from the United States on the issue "in the days to come", adding, "Looking forward to meeting USTR (United States Trade Representative) Lighthizer in Brussels on Sat (Saturday) to discuss."
The EU commissioners on Wednesday gave the political endorsement to a proposal aiming to counter the possible U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs, saying the EU stands ready to react proportionately and fully in line with the World Trade Organization (WTO) rules once the U.S. measures affect EU's interest. On the hit list of the bloc's countermeasures were said to be flagship U.S. products, including steel, peanut butter, bourbon whiskeys and denim jeans.
"Protectionism cannot be the answer, it never is," Malmstrom told a Wednesday press conference, however, adding that the EU, as a U.S. security partner, still hoped that it could be excluded from the U.S. tariffs.