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Donald Trump has ordered a probe into copper dumping in the US, laying the groundwork for imports of the metal to be hit with tariffs as the president expands the ambit of his protectionist drive.
Trump on Tuesday directed the Department of Commerce to open an investigation into copper imports on national security grounds. If the probe finds evidence of dumping it would allow his administration to take retaliatory measures, including imposing tariffs or quotas.
“You will see that our new secretary of commerce, Howard Lutnick, will move what I like to call ‘in Trump time’, which is as quickly as possible, and get the results of his investigation to the president’s desk for possible action,” said Peter Navarro, Trump’s senior counsellor for trade and manufacturing policy.
The investigation comes as investors have grown increasingly concerned over how Trump’s sweeping tariff threats will affect the US economy. The blue-chip S&P 500 share index fell for the fourth day in a row on Tuesday after a closely-followed poll pointed to rising anxieties among American consumers over the levies.
Trump’s announcement is the new administration’s latest move to reshape the country’s trading relationship with the world. He used the results of a similar investigation to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports in 2018. He has said he will reimpose the levies next month.
The president has also unveiled tariffs directly targeting the US’s trading partners, including Canada, Mexico and China. He plans to introduce so-called “reciprocal tariffs” on nations that impose levies on the US.
The White House did not say how long the copper probe would take or when tariffs could potentially be introduced. Under the legislation, the commerce secretary has 270 days to prepare a report, but officials indicated Lutnick intended to move quickly.
Copper is a key ingredient for construction, transport and electronics. The US Department of Energy added it to a list of critical materials in 2023 because of the rapidly growing demand in solar technologies and electric vehicles, among other areas. It is also widely used in weaponry.
The US imports about 45 per cent of the copper it consumes, according to research by ING Bank. Chile and Canada are its biggest suppliers — providing 35 per cent and 26 per cent of imports respectively — and would be hardest hit by any levies.
The US was the biggest producer of the metal in the middle of the past century but has since fallen to fifth place. White House officials said Trump wanted to return the country to a leadership position in the industry.
“It is time for copper to come home,” said Lutnick on Tuesday. “Like our steel and aluminium industries, our great American copper industry has been decimated by global actors attacking our domestic production.”
