TRUMP’S STEEL, ALUMİNUM

Trump’s Steel, Aluminum Tariffs Exempt Canada, Mexico​

President Donald Trump pressed ahead with the imposition of 25 percent tariffs on steel imports and 10 percent for aluminum on Thursday but exempted Canada and Mexico, backtracking from earlier pledges of tariffs on all countries.

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/3/?tab=wm#inbox/162085ec1e6d6619

Describing the dumping of steel and aluminum in the United States as “an assault on our country,” Trump told a news conference that the best outcome would for companies to move here and insisted that domestic production was needed for national security reasons.

“If you don’t want to pay tax, bring your plant to the USA,” he said.

Details of the plan came from a briefing by administration officials ahead of Trump’s speech. Other countries can apply for exemptions, according to the administration, although details of when they would be granted were thin.

Trump has offered relief from steel and aluminum tariffs to countries that “treat us fairly on trade,” a gesture aimed at putting pressure on Canada and Mexico to give ground in separate talks on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which appear to have stalled.

READ MORE

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/3/?tab=wm#inbox/162085ec1e6d6619

Trump's Steel, Aluminum Tariffs Exempt Canada, Mexico

            U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum imports will start in 15 days with initial exemptions for Canada and Mexico and the possibility of alternatives for other countries, a senior administration official said on Thursday.

FILE PHOTO:

Rolled steel are seen at a Hyundai Steel plant in Dangjin, about 130 km (81 miles) southwest of Seoul June 15, 2011. REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won/File Photo

            The tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, proclaimed by Trump on Thursday during an event at the White House, appear to soften what the U.S. president billed last week as a global, “no-exceptions” move to protect the two industries under a 1962 national security trade law.

            Trump’s sudden push for the tariffs last week triggered fears of a global trade war and rattled financial markets. U.S. stocks pared gains on Thursday after the administration official’s comments.

            The official told reporters the tariff proclamations will allow other countries to discuss with the administration “alternative ways” to address the national security threat caused by their steel and aluminum exports to the United States, the official said.

            Asked whether these would include voluntary export restraints, the official did not provide specifics, saying only that the order could be “flexibly modified.”

FILE PHOTO: Freshly laminated rails are seen during the cooling process at the Tata Steel factory in Hayange, Eastern France, September 25, 2013. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler/File Photo

            The tariff plan has angered U.S. allies, including Canada, Mexico, Britain and members of the European Union, who argue that their exports to the United States do not pose a threat to U.S. national security. Some, including the EU, have threatened retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products such as bourbon whiskey and Harley-Davidson (HOG.N) motorcycles.

“All countries will be welcome to discuss with the United States alternative ways to address the threatened impairment of the national security caused by their imports,” the official said.

The exemptions for Canada and Mexico would start immediately with an unspecified duration. Their continuation depends partly on progress in negotiations to modernize the North American Free Trade Agreement, the official said. He added that NAFTA was an important part of the U.S.-Canada-Mexico security relationship.

But the official said that with any alternative remedies, it was important to maintain the target for increasing steel and aluminum industry capacity utilization, which could result in higher tariffs for other countries.

“If Canada and Mexico were to be excluded, we would perhaps maybe have to raise the tariffs on everybody else - and modestly I might add, modestly - to ensure that our steel and aluminum industries are defended,” he said.

Washıngton -Reuters- David Lawder

@#MedyaGünebakış ©#MedyaGünebakış

Ökkeş Bölükbaşı, İstanbul – Mart.2018 - okkesb61@gmail.com,

http://www.medyagunebakis.com/ - okkesb@turkfreezone.com,