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By Lucia Suarez Sang, Kathryn Watson
/ CBS News
President Trump on Monday impose 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports into the United States.
“This is a big deal, the beginning of making America rich again,” Mr. Trump said as he signed the tariff orders in the Oval Office. All foreign steel and aluminum imports, regardless of the country of origin, will be subject to the tariffs.
“President Trump’s bold actions restores the strength of America’s steel and aluminum industries and puts an end to the rampant exploitation and circumvention that has hurt American workers. With these tariffs, the days of foreign nations gaming our trade system are over,” a senior administration official said.
Over the weekend, speaking on Air Force One on the way to New Orleans to attend the 2025 Super Bowl, Mr. Trump said he would also announce “reciprocal tariffs” on Tuesday or Wednesday, which he said will go into effect immediately. This means that the U.S. would impose import duties on products in cases where another country has levied duties on U.S. goods.
“If they charge us, we charge them … every country,” he said, adding, “If they are charging us 130% and we’re charging them nothing, it’s not going to stay that way.”
The European Commission said Monday it hadn’t received any official notification of the tariffs, but French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the EU would “replicate” any imposed, according to Agence France-Presse.
“There is no hesitation when it comes to defending our interests,” he said during an interview with broadcaster TF1.
Germany said Europe would react in a “united and determined manner,” AFP reported, quoting Robert Habeck, as saying, “In the long term, a tariff conflict only has losers.”
During his first term in the White House, Mr. Trump imposed 25% tariffs on steel and 10% on aluminum before granting several trading partners duty-free quotas.
Earlier this month, the president authorized a wave of tariffs on America’s three closest trading partners — Mexico, Canada and China. Last week he agreed to a 30-day pause on threats to impose 25% tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, with another 10% tariff on Canadian oil, natural gas and electricity.
Mr. Trump, an avowed fan of tariffs, says they are necessary to ensure greater cooperation from the countries to stop illegal immigration and prevent fentanyl smuggling, but he has also pledged to use tariffs to boost domestic manufacturing and raise revenues for the federal government.
contributed to this report.
Lucia Suarez Sang is an associate managing editor at CBSNews.com. Previously, Lucia was the director of digital content at FOX61 News in Connecticut and has previously written for outlets including FoxNews.com, Fox News Latino and the Rutland Herald.
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