Mondays mean tariffs. That seems to be the trade policy strategy of US President Donald Trump. This time, a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports from that country.
Spain is the tenth exporter of steel to the US, with sales to that country of 290,000 tons in the last 11 months and one week, according to data from the US Public Administration. The value of these exports was $263 million (255 million euros), according to the UN's COMTRADE database. This figure is 2.2% lower than in 2023, despite the US increasing its purchases of that alloy from abroad by 4%.
As for aluminum, Spain ranks twenty-eighth, with 19,664 tons in 2024, reaching a value of $132.93 million (128.9 million euros).
The main steel exporters to the US are, in descending order, Canada, Brazil, and Mexico; for aluminum, Canada, the United Arab Emirates, and China. Trump already imposed tariffs on imports of these two metals in 2018, triggering a trade war. Last July, the Biden administration changed technical specifications for aluminum imports, which some saw as a hidden tariff.
Additionally, Trump has stated that he will announce tariffs on countries that impose tariffs on imports from the US either tomorrow or the day after. It is highly likely that the European Union - or EU members - will be affected by this latest measure. However, the US President has declared that these tariffs will not automatically take effect. This means that Trump is willing to withdraw them in exchange for concessions from its trading partners.
This was the case with the tariffs he threatened Canada and Mexico with last week. The US President agreed to postpone them by a month in exchange for two essentially symbolic measures from Mexico and Ottawa. Mexico announced it would increase the National Guard troops patrolling the border with the US from 32,000 to 42,000 to prevent the entry of undocumented immigrants, within the usual range of soldiers dedicated to this task. Canada announced a plan to invest $1.5 billion in border security, a decision made in December. Trump's accusation of illegal immigration from Canada was substantiated when the Royal Canadian Mounted Police killed an American and detained 15 others trying to enter the country illegally the next day.
The 10% tariffs Trump announced on Chinese imports, however, remained in place. On Thursday, Beijing responded by increasing taxes on US imports by nearly 14 billion euros annually.
It is unclear whether the US will impose tariffs on aluminum from Mexico and Canada. But the decision could have consequences for various sectors. Some favored by Trump - such as the oil industry - and others not - like wind energy - which use types of steel not manufactured in the US. During his first term, Trump imposed similar tariffs on steel and aluminum but established numerous exceptions - for example, for allies in the oil industry - to continue importing that alloy into the US.
Paris demands immediate retaliation from Europe
Europe's response has been swift. France demands that the European Commission immediately impose tariffs on US products in retaliation for those announced by President Donald Trump on steel and aluminum, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said on Monday.
Despite Paris's threats, the European Union has not received any "official notification" regarding the new US tariffs, the Commission stated on Monday. "We will not respond to general announcements without details or written clarifications," the Commission wrote in a statement, emphasizing that it would react to protect European companies' interests in case of "unjustified measures."
"Trump imposed these tariffs in 2018, and we responded then. Now we will respond again," said the French Foreign Minister on TF1 television.
Barrot added that it will be up to the European Commission to decide which products to impose these tariffs on and denied wanting to start a trade war.
China expresses rejection of the latest tariffs
China stated on Monday that there are no winners in trade wars and asserted that "protectionism has no way out" in commenting on the latest tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump on steel and aluminum imports.
"Protectionism has no way out. There are no winners in trade and tariff wars," said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun at a press conference.
He also mentioned that China opposes the politicization of economic, trade, and technological issues and that, on the contrary, Beijing's intention has always been to "create an internationalized business environment based on law and market orientation."
"The Chinese market treats all countries equally and is equally open to companies from all countries," he said.