Trump to announce 25% steel and aluminum tariffs

US President Donald Trump said he will introduce new 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports into the US, on top of existing metals duties, in another major escalation of his trade policy overhaul.

Trump, speaking to reporters on Air Force One on his way to the NFL Super Bowl in New Orleans, said he will announce the new metals tariffs on Monday.

He also said he will announce reciprocal tariffs on Tuesday or Wednesday, to take effect almost immediately, applying them to all countries and matching the tariff rates levied by each country.

"And very simply, it's, if they charge us, we charge them," Trump said of the reciprocal tariff plan.

The largest sources of US steel imports are Canada, Brazil and Mexico, followed by South Korea and Vietnam, according to government and American Iron and Steel Institute data.

By a large margin, hydropower-rich Canada is the largest supplier of primary aluminum metal to the US, accounting for 79 per cent of total imports in the first 11 months of 2024.

"Canadian steel and aluminum support key industries in the US from defence, shipbuilding and auto," Canadian Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne posted on X.

"We will continue to stand up for Canada, our workers, and our industries."

Trump also said that while the US government would allow Japan's Nippon Steel to invest in US Steel , it would not allow this to become a majority stake.

"Tariffs are going to make it very successful again, and I think it has good management," Trump said of US Steel.

Nippon Steel declined to comment on the latest announcements from Trump.

During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs of 25 per cent on steel and 10 per cent on aluminum, but later granted several trading partners duty-free exemptions, including Canada, Mexico and Brazil. Mexico is a major supplier of aluminum scrap and aluminum alloy.

Former President Joe Biden later negotiated duty-free quota arrangements with Britain, the European Union and Japan. It was not immediately clear from Trump's announcement what will happen to those exemptions and quota arrangements.