The most recent one is a new announcement that President Donald Trump has made where he says that he will impose a 25 percent tax on the import of steel and aluminum. Trump will address this point more formally shortly.
Trump announces reciprocal tariff
While talking to the media on Sunday while on the President’s official airplane Air Force One, Trump said he would also impose reciprocal tariffs on different countries. While he did not say on which countries he would impose reciprocal tariffs, he did mention that any time any country imposed higher tariffs on America, he would impose that same tariff on that country. During the first Presidential term also, Donald Trump used to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and 10 percent tariffs on aluminum.
Countries affected by tariffs on steel and aluminum
The countries that will be hardest hit by Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum would include Canada, Mexico, and Brazil. According to the data, America imports most of its steel from Canada, Brazil, and Mexico. Besides this, America also imports steel from South Korea and Vietnam, hence, most of these countries would be affected by the decision of Trump to impose a tariff. Especially Canada, because America imported about 79 percent of its steel needs from Canada in the first 11 months of 2024. At the same time, most of its aluminum comes from Mexico.
It is worth noting that Trump had recently announced the imposition of a 25 percent tariff on Canada and Mexico. Later, he prorogued that imposition for 30 days in respect to both countries. Media has been reporting the possibility of the imposition of that tariff on pharmaceuticals, oil, and semiconductors, and consideration is currently being entertained in this regard. Donald Trump is taking these measures primarily to improve the American economy and reduce its trade deficit; the resultant impact is being felt increasingly across the entire global economic landscape.
