US President Donald Trump signed executive orders to impose 25 percent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from March 12, ramping up a long-promised trade war despite warnings from Europe and China.
The European Union swiftly vowed to retaliate with “firm and proportionate countermeasures”.
In an executive order released Monday, Trump said: “As of March 12, 2025, all imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK shall be subject to the additional ad valorem tariff.”
He issued a separate order for steel, which said it would apply to all imports from the same countries the aluminum tariffs hit, as well as to Brazil, Japan and South Korea.
“I’m simplifying our tariffs on steel and aluminum,” Trump said earlier in the Oval Office. “It’s 25 percent without exceptions or exemptions.”
The tariffs also appear to indirectly target China, with the executive …