US President Donald Trump has agreed to consider exempting Australia from steel and aluminium tariffs in light of the country’s trade surplus with the United States, following a phone call with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Trump sharply raised tariffs on steel and aluminium imports on Monday, eliminating exemptions and quotas for major suppliers.
His decision reimposed 25% tariffs on millions of tonnes of steel and aluminium imports that had been entering the United States duty-free under quota and exemption deals and thousands of product exemptions.
Albanese said in the call with Trump that he had laid out the case for Australia to be exempt.
After telling reporters there would be no exemptions, Trump noted that Australia was one of the few countries with which the United States has a trade surplus, following the call with Albanese.
