Paris (AFP) – Canada, Mexico, and the EU on Tuesday slammed US President Donald Trump’s “unjustified” decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, which has raised fears of a broader trade war. Trump signed executive orders to impose 25 percent tariffs on imports of the metals starting March 12, triggering a flurry of angry reactions. The European Union and Canada vowed to retaliate firmly.
Such tariffs would be “entirely unjustified”, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at an artificial intelligence conference in Paris. “Our response will of course be firm and clear,” Trudeau told AFP, as Canadian steelmakers warned of “massive” disruption from Trump’s move. In Mexico — the third-largest steel exporter to the United States, after Canada and Brazil — a top minister urged Trump not to “destroy” four decades of North American trade ties. Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said the balance of trade in steel and aluminium between Mexico and the United States was in Washington’s favor by almost $6.9 billion in 2024, and tariffs were therefore “not justified”.
In Brussels, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen warned that “unjustified tariffs on the EU…will trigger firm and proportionate countermeasures”. EU trade ministers will discuss the 27-country bloc’s next steps in a video conference Wednesday, while Trudeau will separately discuss strategy with top officials in Brussels. Brazil, for its part, said it had no intention of entering into a trade war with the United States, despite President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva having vowed reciprocation if Trump imposed tariffs.
South Korea, the fourth-biggest steel exporter to the United States, also vowed to protect its companies’ interests. Acting President Choi Sang-mok said Seoul would seek to reduce uncertainties “by building a close relationship with the Trump administration and expanding diplomatic options”. A spokesman for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said London was “engaging with our US counterparts to work through the detail” of the tariffs. Britain’s steel industry body called the tariff plan a “devastating blow”, while its European counterpart said it would worsen “an already dire market environment”.
In Monday’s executive order, Trump said “all imports of aluminium articles and derivative aluminium articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK” will be subject to additional tariffs. The same countries are named in his executive order on steel, along with Brazil, Japan, and South Korea. Trump said he was “simplifying” US tariffs, adding: “It’s 25 percent without exceptions or exemptions.” But Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the United States was considering an exemption for his country after he spoke to Trump by phone.
The tariffs also appear to indirectly target China, with the executive orders detailing how Chinese producers are “using” Mexico’s tariff exemption to “funnel” aluminium into the United States. Trump has signalled he would look at imposing additional tariffs on automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and computer chips, and has promised an announcement Tuesday or Wednesday on broader “reciprocal tariffs” to match those of other governments. During his 2017-2021 presidency, Trump imposed sweeping tariffs to counteract what he saw as unfair competition faced by US industries from Asian and European countries.
As it weighs how to respond to Trump, the EU bloc could simply revisit its retaliatory tariffs from 2018, which were suspended after a truce with President Joe Biden. Those would come back into force when a deadline expires at the end of March, affecting a range of US goods including bourbon. Brussels has given no indication as to what action it might take but German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the EU would present a united front. Around a quarter of European steel exports go to the United States, according to the consulting firm Roland Berger.
“There is definitely no need to panic,” an EU diplomat told AFP, calling Trump’s tariff move “stupid, but predictable.” The diplomat voiced doubt, however, that “dialogue is enough,” saying the United States would most likely “expect gestures or ‘deals’.” Ford CEO Jim Farley said Tuesday that Trump’s tariffs and other measures were creating “a lot of cost and a lot of chaos” for his company and other US carmakers.
© 2024 AFP
