Trump announces a 50% tariff on imported copper

The President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he would announce a 50% duty on copper in the afternoon, with the aim of increasing U.S. production. Copper is a critical metal for electric vehicles, military equipment, the power grid, and many consumer products.

Trump's decision imposed copper tariffs shocked the markets. It came earlier and at a greater rate than expected.

Industry had expected

After the announcement, U.S. Comex Copper futures jumped over 12% to a new record high.

Trump informed reporters during a cabinet meeting at the White House that he would announce the copper tariff later in the afternoon, but did not specify when it would go into effect.

Trump stated that he believes the tariff on copper will result in a 50% increase.

In an interview with CNBC, U.S. commerce secretary Howard Lutnick stated that copper tariffs will likely be implemented by the end or August.

In February, the Trump administration announced a Section 232 investigation of U.S. imports. The investigation was due to be completed by November, but it wasn't clear if the new tariffs meant that the investigation was over.

The White House didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment.

The National Mining Association refused to comment and said it would rather wait for more details to be released. American Critical Minerals Association didn't immediately respond to comments.

Copper is used for many industries, including construction, transportation, electronic devices, and electronics. About half of the copper that America needs is imported each year.

In recent years, major copper projects in the United States faced opposition for a number of reasons. These include Rio Tinto's Resolution Copper Project in Arizona and Northern Dynasty Minerals Pebble Mine Project in Alaska.

Freeport-McMoRan shares, the largest copper producer in the world, based in Phoenix, rose nearly 5% on Tuesday afternoon. The company did not respond immediately to a comment request. It produced 1.26 billion pounds of copper in the United States during last year.

Freeport would benefit from U.S. Copper Tariffs, but

Worries that duties will hurt the global economy

- advised Trump to concentrate on increasing U.S. Copper production.

According to U.S. Census Bureau statistics, the countries most likely to be affected by a new U.S. Copper Tariff are Chile, Canada, and Mexico. These three countries were the United States' top suppliers of refined copper and copper alloys in 2024.

Chile, Canada, and Peru -- three of the United States' largest copper suppliers -- have informed the Trump administration that their imports do not pose a threat to U.S. interest and shouldn't be subjected to tariffs. All three countries have free-trade agreements with the United States.

Requests for comments from the Mexican Economy Ministry, Chilean Foreign Ministry, and Canadian Finance Ministry were not immediately responded to. Chile's Mining Ministry, and Codelco Copper Miner, declined to comment.

Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He said that a 50% tariff on imported copper would hurt U.S. firms who use the metal, because the country has years to go before it can meet its demand.

Hansen stated that the U.S. imported enough copper to meet a year's worth of demand in the last six months. "I expect a correction of copper prices after the initial spike." Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Jarrett Renshaw, Additional reporting by Polina Devtt, Toronto, Divya Raagapal, Santiago, Fabian Cambero, Daina Beth Solon, and Cynthia Osterman; Editing by Veronica Brown and Franklin Paul;

(source: Reuters)