WorldPosted at: Jun 4 2025 11:37AM

Washington, June 4 (UNI) US President Donald Trump has decided to double the country's trade tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50% starting from June 4, as per an official declaration from the Oval Office.
"Although the previously imposed steel and aluminum tariffs have helped provide critical price support in the US market, they have not yet enabled these industries to develop and maintain the rates of capacity production utilisation that are necessary for the industries' sustained health and for projected national defense needs," the document, published on the White House website, read, reports Sputnik.
Furthermore, Trump also decided to impose a different regime for imports of steel and aluminum products and their derivatives from the United Kingdom under the US-UK Economic Prosperity Deal of May 8, the document added.
"The applicable rates of duty for articles of the United Kingdom … shall remain at 25% ad valorem. On or after July 9, 2025, the Secretary may adjust the applicable rates of duty and construct import quotas for steel and aluminum consistent with the terms of the EPD, or he may increase the applicable rates of duty to 50% if he determines that the United Kingdom has not complied with relevant aspects of the EPD," the proclamation read.
Part of his make America great again policy, announcing the decision on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump said “It is my great honour to raise the Tariffs on steel and aluminum from 25% to 50%, effective Wednesday, June 4th. Our steel and aluminum industries are coming back like never before. This will be yet another BIG jolt of great news for our wonderful steel and aluminum workers. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”
This increase in import duties, is the latest bastion of President Donald Trump’s ongoing trade war, part of a broad range of tariffs he’s levied since February. The steel tariffs in particular, are especially significant to his administration, as the country's once vibrant steel manufacturing has been hit with major problems in the past few years.
“Domestic steel and aluminum production is imperative for our defense-industrial base,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement to CNN.
“The Trump administration is committed to reshoring manufacturing that’s critical for our national and economic security while unleashing a full suite of supply-side reforms – including rapid deregulation, tax cuts, and unleashing American energy – to continue delivering economic relief for the American people.”
The American Iron and Steel Institute, an industry trade group, said that protecting the steel industry is crucial.
“We still consume more steel than we produce in America,” said Lourenco Goncalves, CEO of Cleveland Cliffs, one of the major US steelmakers, and the chairman of AISI.
He said that raising the tariffs to 50% will only increase the cost of building a car by $300, which he called a minor hike when compared to the overall cost of a car.
“The average cost of a car is $48,000, with an added $300, it’s $48,300. That’s not going to be the decision-making factor for a person to buy or not buy a car,” he said at a press conference Tuesday.
But the Aluminum Association, the trade group for that industry, said it worried that the broad universal tariff could hurt it more than it helps as it cuts off the supply of raw aluminum from Canada many finishing mills in the United States depend upon. Those mills account for most of the jobs in the US aluminum industry.
As per financial experts, while the tariffs could protect domestic steel manufacturing jobs, they could hurt employment in much larger industries.
“I think that’s a really quintessentially damaging policy, there are (at least) 50 times more workers…in industries that use steel, like cars, than there are in the steel industry,” Larry Summers, director of the National Economic Council during the Obama administration, told CNN Monday. “And so the net effect of this is going to be to destroy manufacturing jobs. The net effect of this is going to be to push up consumer prices.”
Additionally, the EU and the UK have also not taken kindly to the increase, and decided to respond in kind.
“We strongly regret the announced increase of US tariffs on steel imports from 25% to 50%,” said Olof Gill, the trade spokesperson for the European Commission.
Gill said the decision “adds further uncertainty to the global economy and increases costs for consumers and businesses on both sides of the Atlantic” and that the European Commission is “finalising consultations on expanded countermeasures.”
“If no mutually acceptable solution is reached, both existing and additional EU measures will automatically take effect on 14 July — or earlier, if circumstances require,” Gill added.
A British government spokesperson told CNN that the UK remains “committed to protecting British business and jobs across key sectors, including steel” and that it is “engaging with the US on the implications of the latest tariff announcement and to provide clarity for industry.”
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