Trump Administration Imposes Steel, Aluminum Tariffs On EU, Canada And Mexico

The Trump administration made good on threats to impose tariffs on some of the nation's closest allies Thursday, announcing it will no longer exempt Canada, Mexico and the European Union from previously announced levies on steel and aluminum.

The announcement was made in Paris by Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.

Canada and Mexico had been exempted from the tariffs announced in March while negotiations over the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, continued. But Ross said those talks were taking longer than "we had hoped." And so the administration decided to lift the exemption from the tariffs for those countries.

He said trade talks with the EU had also been fruitless.

The EU is the nation's No. 1 source of imported steel, and Canada is the top aluminum source.

The tariffs — 25 percent on imports of steel and 10 percent on aluminum — take effect at midnight Friday. They are expected to lead to retaliation from European nations. Likely targets are thought to be U.S. exports of jeans, motorcycles and bourbon.

EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said of the U.S. tariffs, "This is protectionism, pure and simple. We will defend the Union's interests, in full compliance with international trade law." - Read Nore

Trump Administration Imposes Steel, Aluminum Tariffs On EU, Canada And Mexico