U.S. Will Lift Tariffs On Steel And Aluminum From Canada And Mexico

Old_Joe

NPR is currently reporting that:

The Trump administration has reached a deal to lift tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico, in a move that could put the three nations a step closer to ratifying the USMCA trade deal that would replace NAFTA.

The tariffs will be lifted within two days, according to a joint U.S.-Canada statement posted by Canada's foreign ministry.

The U.S. tariffs on metals from Canada and Mexico have been in effect for nearly a year, with steel imports subject to a 25% tariff and aluminum to a 10% hike. Retaliatory tariffs from Canada and Mexico have been in place for nearly as long.

Mexico's foreign affairs undersecretary for North America, Jesús Seade, also hailed the agreement, saying it was received with "great enthusiasm" in Mexico. He added, "This action opens the path to advance toward the ratification" of the replacement NAFTA deal.

And with both countries' leaders now hoping to get the USMCA ratified, Trudeau said, "it didn't make a lot of sense to continue to have tariffs on steel and aluminum between our countries."

The deal also calls on both countries to prevent the importation of aluminum and steel that is "unfairly subsidized and/or sold at dumped prices."

Comment: Could that possibly be... China???

"Canada buys more American steel than any other country in the world, accounting for some 50% of U.S. exports," the Canadian government says. It adds that nearly 84% of Canadian aluminum production is exported to the U.S.

In response to the tariff deal, the Coalition of American Metal Manufacturers and Users, or CAMMU, welcomed the news and called on the Trump administration to lift other steel and aluminum tariffs. CAMMU also praised the new agreement for not replacing the newly eliminated tariffs with quotas, which it described as "even worse for U.S. companies."

Trump imposed steel and aluminum tariffs on every country except Canada and Mexico about a month after receiving a letter from 25 U.S. steel and metal companies urging him to act "to prevent excess steel capacity and surging steel imports from undermining our national security and the viability of the U.S. steel industry."

Trump's original order included carve-outs for the closest U.S. neighbors. But after talks on a revised NAFTA deal took longer than the U.S. administration had hoped, Canada and Mexico were included in the tariffs. The leaders of the three countries signed the new U.S. Mexico Canada Agreement in late November. It won't take effect until all three countries' legislatures have voted to ratify the trade pact.

In late April, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, warned Trump that the USMCA deal would be "dead" unless the steel and aluminum tariffs were lifted.

The preceding are excerpts from the NPR article, and have been edited for brevity.