Bob Tita of The Wall Street Journal reports that the White House is adding duties to imports from Mexico that contain steel and aluminum from China as domestic manufacturers cry foul over lower-cost goods. He writes:
The Biden administration is imposing tariffs on Mexican imports that use steel or aluminum from China in hopes of stopping the metals from entering the U.S. duty free.
The U.S. will levy a 25% tariff on Mexican imports containing steel from China and a 10% duty on products made with aluminum from the country, the White House said.
Products from Mexico typically enter the U.S. duty free as part of a trade agreement with Canada and Mexico. Steel and aluminum must be melted and poured in the U.S., Mexico or Canada to qualify for duty-free treatment, according to the White House.
U.S. steelmakers and other manufacturers have complained that China is circumventing the existing tariffs on steel and aluminum by routing the metals through Mexico. […]
U.S. imports of aluminum from Mexico have increased by 59% from 2020 to 710,000 metric tons in 2023, according to the Aluminum Association trade group.
Through the first three months of 2024, the group reported that imports were down about 9% from the same period in 2023. As part of Wednesday’s tariff order, the U.S. also extended a 10% duty on Mexican imports that contain aluminum from Russia, Iran and Belarus.
Read more here.
