Trump strikes after reprisals at steel and aluminum prices

Natalie Sherman

Business Reporter, BBC News

Getty images

US President Donald Trump is committed to imposing more prices after his last decision to introduce steel and aluminum import taxes in the United States has caused reprisals from the European Union (EU) and Canada.

Trump said “of course” that he would respond to countermeasures, repeating his warning to reveal “reciprocal” prices next month on countries in the world.

“Whatever they charge us, we charge them,” he said.

The threat has marked a new escalation of a trade war that rocked financial markets in the midst of concerns about the impact on economies and consumers in many countries of the world, including the United States.

On Wednesday, Trump advanced with a plan to expand American prices on steel and aluminum, imposing a general task of 25% and ending the exemptions that the United States had previously granted for shipments of certain countries.

This followed a prescription earlier this month, which increased the samples from Chinese imports to the United States to at least 20%.

Trump has also threatened prices – which are taxes applied to goods when they enter a country – on a range of more specific items, including copper, wood and cars.

Managers in Canada and Europe qualified new metals to tax without justification and retaliated with their own rates on a range of American products.

Other countries that are the main American metal suppliers, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Mexico and Brazil, have retained immediate reprisals.

“Like everyone, I am disappointed to see global prices related to steel and aluminum, but we will adopt a pragmatic approach,” said British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

“We … negotiating an agreement that covers and includes prices if we succeed. But we will keep all the options on the table.”

“Bad for business, worse for consumers”

Canada said from Thursday that it would start to charge a 25% tax on almost $ 30 billion CA ($ 20 billion; 16 billion) of American products, including steel, computers and sports equipment.

The concept of Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was ready to negotiate a renewed trade agreement with Trump as long as there is “respect for Canadian sovereignty”.

The EU said it would increase its samples over 26 billion dollars ($ 28 billion; 22 billion) of American goods, including boats, bourbon and motorcycles, from April 1.

The president of the EU Ursula von der Leyen said that the answer was intended to be “strong but proportioned” and added that the EU was “ready to engage in a significant dialogue”.

“Prices are taxes. They are bad for business and worse for consumers,” she said, warning that the economic disturbance has put jobs into play and would send higher prices.

“No one needs this on both sides, neither in the European Union nor in the United States.”

Trump said he wanted to increase American steel and aluminum production in the longer term, but criticisms say that in the immediate term, metal import taxes will increase prices for American consumers and the economic growth of the United States.

The main packaged food manufacturers, including Quaker Oats and Folgers Coffee, asked Trump targeted prices on imports such as cocoa and fruit, according to a letter seen by Reuters.

Pepsico, Conagra and JM Smucker, also asked the president of exempt ingredients not available from American sources in the letter, which was sent by the commercial group The Consumer Brands Association.

Coffee, oats, cocoa, spices, tropical fruits and tin mill steel, used for certain household foods and articles, are part of the imports listed as unavailable at the national level, Reuters reported.

Import taxes should also reduce the demand for steel and aluminum that is not made in the United States – a blow for metal manufacturers elsewhere.

The EU has said the latest American rates affect approximately 5% of its total exports to the United States, while the United States is the destination for around 90% of Canadian steel and aluminum exports.

In the United States, shares were mixed Wednesday, after two days of sharp decline. The DOW closed 0.2%, while the S&P 500 finished almost 0.5%higher and the Nasdaq jumped 1.2%.

In an appearance at the White House with Irish Prime Minister Taoiseach Michel Martin, Trump said that he had not planned to retreat from his commercial struggle, saying that he was “not satisfied” from the EU trade policies.

He has cited concerns about the legal sanctions he imposed on the apple and the rules he affirmed put American agricultural products and cars in disadvantage.

“They do what they should do for the European Union, but that creates poor will,” he said.

Repeating his threat to hit European cars with prices, he added later: “We are going to win this financial battle.”

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