Trump Slaps 50% Tariffs On Copper Imports

President Donald Trump on Wednesday imposed a 50% tariff on imports of semi-finished copper products into the United States, with the new levy coming into effect from August 1.

In an announcement, the White House said the universal 50% tariffs apply to imports of semi-finished copper products, such as copper pipes, wires, rods, sheets, and tubes.

Prices of the metal fell nearly 18% before recovering slightly to trade around $5.1 per pound at the time of writing.

The United States Copper Index Fund (CPER), which tracks the SummerHaven Copper Index, fell nearly 18%.

However, in what would come as relief for the U.S. automobile industry, the White House said the copper tariffs will not stack on top of levies for imports of automobiles.

If a product is also subject to auto tariffs, the copper duty will not be separately applicable, and instead, the import tax on vehicles will apply.

The copper levies are applicable under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act.

The Trump administration also invoked the Defense Production Act to require 25% of high-quality copper scrap and forms of raw copper produced in the U.S. to be sold within the country.

U.S. equities traded mixed as investors reacted to the Federal Reserve keeping rates unchanged and President Trump announcing tariffs on Brazil and copper levies.

At the time of writing, the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY), which tracks the S&P 500 index, was down 0.09%, while the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) gained 0.16%. Retail sentiment around the S&P 500 ETF on Stocktwits was in the ‘extremely bullish’ territory.

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Also See: Fed Keeps Rates Unchanged, Highlights Moderating Economic Activity In First Half