Aluminum Association asks Trump to exempt aluminum metal supply from tariffs

Aluminum Association President & CEO Charles Johnson issued the following statement in response to President Trump’s Executive Order imposing 25% tariffs on all imports entering the United States through Canada: “During his first term, President Trump was early to recognize the genuine threat that non-market actors pose to U.S. manufacturing industries like ours. This led to more than $10 billion in industry investment since 2016. This investment requires an enormous amount of metal, much of which the U.S. industry must import from within North America. To ensure that American aluminum wins the future, President Trump should exempt the aluminum metal supply needed for American manufacturers, while continuing to take every possible action at the U.S. border against unfairly traded Chinese aluminum.” The Association also said, “About 90% of U.S. scrap imports come from either Canada or Mexico. It would take billions of investment over decades to make the United States fully self-sufficient for its metal needs.” Companies in the aluminum space include Alcoa (AA) and Century Aluminum (CENX).