ECONOMY: Donald Trump mentioned tariffs of 25% for steel and 10% for aluminium, but without specifying which countries they will target …
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The US president announced Thursday that he will hit high taxes on imports of steel and aluminum in the United States.
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The stock market on Wall Street has dropped more than 400 points after the announcement Donald Trump.
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A decision that could provoke a trade war with the partners of the United States. The EU has promised to react firmly.
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The price of cars could rise sharply according to Toyota.
Thursday’s threat by US President Donald Trump to impose heavy taxes on steel and aluminium imports in the United States on Thursday has provoked outrageous reactions around the world, raising the risk of a trade war.
The tenant of the White House must announce the imposition of customs duties of 25% for steel and 10% for aluminium . Worried about the potential trade implications between the United States and the rest of the world after this decision, the Wall Street stock market fell by more than 400 points.
Dow Jones falls more than 400 points as traders appeared concerned about a global trade war erupting over Pres. Trump’s tariff announcement. https://t.co/ttlGxUTZo0 pic.twitter.com/bzCX2pR1jt
— ABC News (@ABC) March 1, 2018
The EU promises to “react firmly” the US measures
“We regret very much” this American decision, reacted President of the European Commission. “Instead of providing a solution, this decision can only aggravate things,” he warned in a statement. “We will not stand by while our industry is hit by unfair measures,” he added. The European Union “will react firmly and proportionally to defend (its) interests,” he concluded.
“The EU will start consultations on the settlement of disputes with the United States in Geneva as soon as possible”, the headquarters of the World Trade Organization (WTO), added in the same statement the European Commissioner for Trade Cecilia Malmström.
Germany and the United Kingdom worried
The German steel association Stahl denounced “measures that violate the rules of the World Trade Organization”, demanding the intervention of the European Union. “If Europe does not act, our steel industry will pay the bill for US protectionism,” warned Hans Jürgen Kerkhoff, the president of Stahl, in a statement.
“We have been clear that we are particularly concerned about any measure that could affect UK steel and its aluminum industries,” the British Embassy in Washington said in a statement. ensuring to be in discussion with the Americans.
Canada, the largest supplier of steel and aluminum in the United States
“Any tariff or quota that would be imposed on our Canadian steel and aluminum industry would be unacceptable,” Canadian International Trade Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Thursday. This neighboring country of the United States is its largest supplier of steel and aluminum.
The Canadian government is surprised at a decision that may ultimately run against American manufacturers. “The United States has a surplus of $ 2 billion in the steel trade with Canada, ” said Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland.
For its part, United Steelworkers (USW), a North American steelmaking union, mainly active in the United States and Canada, is demanding that Canadian steel and aluminum producers be excluded from the measures announced by Donald Trump.
“Clearly, Canada is not one of those” bad actors “involved in the unjust trade and dumping of aluminum and steel into the United States,” says the union.
The price of cars impacted
The Japanese automaker Toyota has also alarmed Friday “the negative impact” of the introduction of these taxes, which he says will lead to a significant increase in vehicle prices.
“Over 90% of the steel and aluminum we buy (for the US market) comes from the United States itself,” Toyota said in a statement.
“Nevertheless, the government’s decision to impose high taxes on steel and aluminium will have a negative impact on automakers, suppliers and consumers by significantly increasing costs and therefore the prices of cars and trucks sold in America, “denounced the group.
