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USA imposes 200 % tariffs on aluminium imports

On 24 February the United States announced a series of additional actions to continue holding Russia accountable for its war of aggression.

The United States have announced a series of additional actions to continue providing Ukraine with the support it needs and holding Russia accountable for its war of aggression

Among others, President Biden signed proclamations to raise import tariffs on more than 100 Russian metals, minerals and chemical products worth approx. USD2.8bn to Russia. The measures include a 200 % tariff on the import of aluminium that was smelted or cast in Russia to enter the US market.

In the Proclamation on Adjusting Imports of Aluminium Into the United States President Biden stresses that the “Russian aluminium industry is a key part of Russia’s defence industrial base and has played a major role in supplying Russia with weapons and ammunition used in the war. In addition, Russia’s war against Ukraine has caused global energy prices to rise, causing direct harm to the United States aluminium industry.” 

200 % tariff on aluminium articles and derivatives

To further reduce imports of aluminium articles and increase domestic capacity utilization, President Biden determined to impose a 200 % tariff on aluminium articles and derivative aluminium articles that are the product of Russia, beginning on 10 March 2023. A month later, on 10 April, a 200 % tariff will come into force on aluminium articles where any amount of primary aluminium used in the manufacture of the aluminium articles is smelted in Russia, or the aluminium articles are cast in Russia. The same applies to derivative aluminium articles smelted or cast in Russia.

In practice, this measure is equivalent to an import ban, but it does not concern large quantities of aluminium that the USA obtains from Russia. According to Trade Data Monitor, US imports of unwrought aluminium and alloys from Russia amounted to around 192,000 t in 2022. This is only a fraction of the 945,000 t of aluminium produced in the US in 2022 (source: USGS Mineral Industry Surveys) or the 3.7m t produced in North America (source: IAI Statistics).

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