After temporarily pausing tariffs on certain Mexican and Canadian products last week, President Donald Trump is going back to the well of protectionism. On Monday, he announced a global 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum imports. "No exceptions" for these will be given to countries, according to Trump.
The U.S. is the second-largest steel importer in the world, according to the International Trade Administration. In 2023, the U.S. imported 25.6 million metric tons of steel and exported a little more than 8.2 million metric tons. About half of the aluminum used domestically is imported and by global standards, the U.S. has a very small aluminum smelting industry. Steel and aluminum imports to the U.S. were valued at nearly $50 billion in 2024, per Bloomberg.
Taxes on imports of these materials will not only hurt the economies of other nations, including Canada—which is the No. 1 provider of steel and aluminum imports to the U.S.—Brazil, and Mexico, but they will also have a demonstrable impact on several sectors of America's economy, including energy.
