Trump expected to sign order imposing 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Trump’s planned executive order signings today have been delayed until later this afternoon, the BBC understands.

According to the public schedule released by the White House earlier today, the Oval Office event was originally slated to take place at 13:00 EST (18:00 GMT).

The reasons for the delay are unclear.

Among the executive orders Trump is expected to sign is one mandating the end to an effort to replace plastic straws with eco-friendly paper straws in the US government.

Ritika Gupta
North America business correspondent, reporting from New York

In 2018, the first Trump administration imposed a 10% duty on imported aluminium and 25% on steel. The purpose was to support domestic production and make the industries more self-reliant.

However in 2024, the output of the US steel industry was 1% lower than in 2017, before the first round of tariffs by Trump. While the aluminium industry produced almost 10% less.

Other factors, including rising labour and energy costs, contributed to the slowdown.

While the new tariffs may increase production, there are implications for the broader economy. The US relies on imports to meet the large demand for these metals, which are used in everything from construction to packaging.

Analysts say that US steel mills, which currently run under capacity, will need to ramp up production to compensate for fewer imports.

While tariffs can support domestic producers, the risk is they will ultimately be inflationary and hurt American consumers.

Theo Leggett
BBC International Business Correspondent

The US is a key market for the UK steel industry. It accounts for about 10% of exports overall, but for some suppliers of speciality products it is much more important than that, making up a large proportion of their overall business.

When President Trump imposed 25% tariffs on steel imports during his first presidency, in 2018, it was described as a “hammer blow” by the industry association UK Steel. Exports to the US did fall sharply, from nearly 310,000 tonnes in 2017 to just 153,000 by 2020.

In 2022, the Biden administration introduced an olive branch, creating a tariff free quota for the UK of 500,000 tonnes. This did provoke a short-term improvement. However, UK Steel says other factors, notably the energy crisis that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine stifled the recovery.

The UK industry has had to cope with high energy costs, which have made its products more expensive and less competitive globally.

If Trump were to abolish the current quotas, it would certainly be a blow to the industry. But for a number of years, US firms have also been allowed to import specialist steel products that are not available in the US tariff-free, outside of the quota system.

If these exemptions were to be removed as well, it would have a very serious impact on specialist firms in the UK that have previously benefitted from them.

Another worry for the UK industry is how US tariffs would affect the global steel market as a whole. If exporters from China and East Asia were to find the US market unprofitable, they would look for other places to sell products.

This could lead to the UK market being swamped with cheap steel imports, making life even more difficult for local producers.

We expect Donald Trump to sign executive orders shortly at the White House. But we’re now hearing steel and aluminium tariffs may not be included in this latest batch.

It’s unclear what executive orders the president is about to sign, or whether he will sign more orders later today that address tariffs on the metals.

Stick with us for the latest.

The acting director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has told the agencies’ workers not to come into the office or perform any work without permission.

Russell Vought has moved quickly in seeking to halt the majority of the agency’s work – he was only appointed to the role on Friday.

The CFPB was set up in the wake of the 2007- 2008 financial crisis, with the stated aim of protecting consumers. It was spearheaded in part by the work of Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren.

The White House released a statement on Monday describing the bureau as “another woke, weaponized arm of the bureaucracy”.

They also pinned blame on Warren, calling the agency her “brainchild”.

“President Trump campaigned on lowering costs. But he’s letting billionaire Elon Musk and Project 2025 Architect Russ Vought kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau,” the Massachusetts senator wrote on X. “If they succeed, CEOs on Wall Street will once again be free to cheat you out of your savings.”

• Read more: Musk’s Doge takes aim at US consumer protection agency

As we’ve been reporting, Trump has announced plans to impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports, and he’s expected to sign an executive order to that effect later today.

Earlier we talked you through which countries supply the most steel to the US – now we’re going to take a closer look at aluminium imports.

Of all the countries that supply aluminium to the US, Canada delivers by far the most – around ten times the country in second place, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), according to figures from the US Department of Commerce.

And because Canada supplies more than half the US’s aluminium imports, it is also the country that will be hit hardest by a 25% tariff.

We’re hearing now that Mexico found out about Trump’s anticipated announcement on steel tariffs via the media yesterday.

A little earlier, the European Union said they hadn’t received any official notification of new tariffs – you can read about that in our previous post.

As a reminder, it was only last week that Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum reached an agreement whereby 25% tariffs on imports from the country would be paused for 30 days.

Both then and now, Sheinbaum has insisted the country will act with a “cool head”.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Last week, Donald Trump touched upon another steel issue that his administration is dealing with: the $14.9bn (£12bn) bid by Japan’s Nippon Steel to acquire US Steel.

The deal – previously blocked by President Joe Biden on national security grounds – would create one of the largest steel companies in the world.

Trump – who mistakenly referred to the firm as “Nissan”, like the car company – said that it would drop the bid, and would instead “invest heavily” in the company without taking a majority stake.

Neither company has commented on the deal and no further details were provided. Trump said he would meet with the head of Nippon Steel to “mediate and arbitrate” the deal.

The announcement came as Trump met with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.

Asked about the possibility of US tariffs – and counter-tariffs – Ishiba declined to provide details.

“I am unable to respond to a theoretical question,” he said, eliciting laughs from Trump and journalists in the room. “That’s the official answer we have.”

Privately, Japanese officials told reporters that they would analyse the potential of new US policies – including on the steel industry – before determining a course of action.

Who pays the price of higher tariffs?published at 17:23 Greenwich Mean Time

By Ben Chu

Studies of the tariffs that President Trump imposed in his first term as president suggest that much of the economic burden was ultimately borne by US consumers, external.

A survey by the University of Chicago, external in September 2024 asked a group of economists whether they agreed with the statement that “imposing tariffs results in a substantial portion of the tariffs being borne by consumers of the country that enacts the tariffs, through price increases”. Only 2% disagreed.

For example, Trump imposed a 50% tariff on imports of washing machines in 2018 and researchers estimate thevalue of washing machines jumped, external by around 12% as a direct consequence, equivalent to $86 (£69) per unit.

That meant US consumers paid around $1.5bn extra a year in total for these products.

• You can read more of our analysis on whether tariffs will negatively impact US consumers here.

According to his public schedule, Donald Trump will be signing executive orders in the Oval Office from 13:00 ET (18:00 GMT).

As we’ve reported, at least one of these orders is likely to be an imposition of tariffs on steel and aluminium imports coming into the United States.

Executive orders are written missives issued by the president which do not require congressional approval. Orders range from dramatic reverses of policy, like Trump’s approval for the construction of two bitterly contested oil pipelines in 2017, to ordinary business – such as Barack Obama’s instructions on half-day closing for government departments, external.

Ritika Gupta
North America Business Correspondent

Stocks in the US and Europe are trading higher on Monday, as traders appear to shake off the latest US tariff threat from President Donald Trump. Tech shares, the most influential equity group, are leading the gains.

Meanwhile, steel and aluminium stocks are bouncing higher, with US steel Nucor, Cleveland-Cliffs and Alcoa among the gainers. This comes after Trump announced plans to impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports.

While you might think this news would send stocks falling – Wall Street is taking it in stride, so far. It’s still uncertain whether Trump will follow through on these threats, as we saw with Canada and Mexico, whereby he announced, then paused tariffs, while proceeding with a 10% levy on all shipments from China.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

While we know that President Trump is expected to sign executive orders at about 1300 EST (1800 GMT), the White House has so far not provided me any specific details into what those could be – though I approached them to see if they could shed any light on the topics.

Many observers will be watching to see whether those executive orders involve his highly publicised promise to introduce 25% tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, a decision that would send shockwaves throughout the global economy.

The BBC’s US partner, CBS News, reports an executive order to that effect is expected to be signed at the session, along with another aimed at reversing a Biden administration measure to reduce the federal government’s use of plastic straws.

With President Donald Trump focused on tariffs ahead of an anticipated announcement later today, his secretary of state, Marco Rubio, is set to meet Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty in Washington shortly.

Today’s meeting comes against the backdrop of the president’s continued messaging over how to rebuild Gaza.

On Sunday, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he is “committed to buying and owning” the Gaza Strip and relocating Palestinians who are living there.

It follows his previous comments in which he described Gaza as a “demolition site” – saying the people should be moved, temporarily or long-term.

The idea of displacing Palestinians has subsequently been rejected by several countries, including Egypt.

Rubio and Abdelatty have already spoken since Rubio started in his new position a few weeks ago. A release issued by a spokesperson for the US Department of State referenced a call last month in which the secretary and foreign minister “affirmed the importance of the US-Egypt strategic partnership for promoting regional peace, security, and stability”.

While in Washington DC, Abdelatty has already met with Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen “promoting Egypt-US bilateral relations, developments in Gaza and strengthening regional stability”, according to a spokesperson for the Egyptian foreign ministry.

Meanwhile, Hamas has said today it is suspending the release of Israeli hostages.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, Trump repeated his plan to take over Gaza.

“I’m committed to buying and owning Gaza. As far as US rebuilding it, we may give it to other states in the Middle East to build sections of it,” he said, while travelling to the Super Bowl.

Trump added that he thinks “it’s a big mistake to allow people, the Palestinians… to go back another time”.

“It’s a demolition site. It’ll be reclaimed. It’ll be levelled out, fixed up. There won’t be anybody there,” Trump said, adding that they will build “beautiful sites” on the land.

“People can come from all over the world and live there, but we’re going to take care of the Palestinians.”

As we’ve reported already today, his claims on taking over the region drew widespread criticism last week, and rejection from Palestinians in Gaza. The White House later said any resettlement of residents would be temporary.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Good morning from the White House, where things are currently quiet after a flurry of activity over the weekend.

The pace of events will surely heat up later this week, though, when US President Donald Trump meets Jordan’s King Abdullah against the backdrop of Trump suggesting the US could “take over” Gaza – a move Jordan’s monarch has rejected.

Trump has explicitly said that he believes Jordan could play a role housing Gazans, and suggested that US aid could be used to negotiate a “deal”.

Later in the week, he’s also scheduled to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with whom he has had warm relations in the past.

The return of undocumented Indian immigrants in the US and a push for a narrower trade deficit between the two are likely to form significant parts of their discussions.

Donald Trump has said he is “committed to buying and owning” the Gaza Strip and relocating the two million Palestinians who live there – but how does he see this playing out?

• The US President says he wants to create “an economic development that will supply unlimited numbers of jobs”
• He has dubbed it the “Riviera of the Middle East” – referencing the French Riviera, an area of southern France full of tourists and luxury hotels
• Trump believes he can convince Jordan and Egypt to take in most of neighbouring Gaza’s Palestinians, despite both countries rejecting the idea

• Although the US would own Gaza under Trump’s plan, he says he may recruit other states in the Middle East to rebuild it

• The BBC’s international editor, Jeremy Bowen, says it “is not going to happen” and suggests Trump could be using this claim to appease the Israelis in a broader nuclear weapons peace deal with Iran

Moving away from tariffs momentarily, Fox News has shared another clip from its sit down interview with US President Donald Trump, which has been teased since yesterday.

The latest snippet shows the president discussing his plans for Gaza, announced last week during a televised meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which he said would include the removal of the territory’s entire civilian population and the development of what he called “The Riviera of the Middle East”.

Under the plans, Palestinians “wouldn’t” have the right to return to the territory, Trump tells Fox’s Bret Baier in the newly-released clip. He also says Palestinians will have better housing built for them “a little bit away from where they are” – but doesn’t specify where he means.

Trump’s proposal, which would be a crime under international law, has been almost universally rejected, including by Arab states. The Saudi foreign ministry has said it won’t accept “any infringement on the Palestinians’ unalienable rights”, while Egypt has also rejected the idea.

• As a reminder: The rest of Trump’s Fox interview is due to air this evening at 18:00 ET (23:00 GMT). The first part was released ahead of the Super Bowl game on Sunday.

Harry Farley
Political correspondent

The UK government has made “extensive preparations” to be ready “for all situations”, the prime minister’s spokesperson says when asked about possible US tariffs on steel and aluminium.

“We’re always working to put the interest of UK businesses, consumers and the economy first,” he tells reporters, adding: “But I’m not going to get ahead of proposals that we haven’t seen the detail of yet.”

He also isn’t drawn on whether the UK would retaliate with its own tariffs.

The US accounted for 5% of UK steel exports in 2023 and 6% of aluminium exports, the spokesperson says, and ministers are committed to supporting the British steel industry.

“I haven’t seen any detailed proposals following the reporting overnight, but we will obviously engage as appropriate,” he adds.

Lord Mandelson is still awaiting formal recognition as the UK’s ambassador to Washington, No 10 indicates, but is able to work as the head of the British mission in the US.

We’ve been mentioning the impacts that new tariffs on steel and aluminium could have on key trading partners for the US – if President Donald Trump imposes them – but which countries are the US’s biggest trade partners for steel?

America’s neighbouring countries, Canada and Mexico, are two of the US’s biggest steel trading partners, and Canada is the biggest supplier of aluminium.

If the tariffs do come into effect, they will greatly impact steelmakers in countries that trade with the US.

Canada, Brazil and Mexico were the US’s top three steel trading partners last year, followed by South Korea, Vietnam and Japan.

Michael Race
Business reporter

Coal, oil and gas: Part of China’s countermeasure is to announce import taxes of its own on US coal and liquefied natural gas (LNG) of 10%, and a 15% charge on crude oil.

Agricultural machinery, pick-up trucks and big cars: China has slapped a 10% tariff on them. But China is not a big importer of US pick-ups and it gets most of its cars from Europe and Japan, so it won’t hit consumers too hard.

Google probe: The Chinese authorities have also announced some non-tariff measures, one of which is an anti-monopoly investigation into US tech giant Google. It’s unclear what the investigation will involve, but for context, Google’s search services have been blocked in China since 2010.

Calvin Klein added to ‘unreliable entities’ list: China has added PVH, the American company that owns designer brands Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger, to its so-called “unreliable entity” list and accused them of “discriminatory measures against Chinese enterprises”. They may face sanctions, including fines, and having the work visas of their foreign employees revoked.

Export controls on rare metals: China has mastered the ability to refine such metals, and produced almost 90% of global refined output. The restricted list includes tungsten, which is difficult to source and a crucial material for the aerospace industry.

• Read more about the trade war between the world’s two biggest economies