Expanded United States tariffs on steel and aluminium derivatives took effect on 8 February 2020. The move followed Presidential Proclamation 9980, issued on 24 January, which widened the Section 232 duties first imposed in March 2018. Certain steel derivatives, including nails, tacks, staples and bumper and body stampings for motor vehicles, became subject to an additional 25 percent duty, while aluminium derivatives faced 10 percent. The administration said imports of these downstream products had risen sharply since the original tariffs, suggesting foreign producers were shifting to finished goods to avoid the duties on raw metal. Exemptions applied to steel derivatives from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and South Korea. A new exclusion process was authorised for US importers that could show a product was not available domestically in sufficient quantity or quality. The expansion was expected to affect about $800 million a year of steel derivative imports, based on 2018 trade values.
Source: The White House (archived proclamation) — https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-adjusting-imports-derivative-aluminum-articles-derivative-steel-articles-united-states/
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