Anthony Albanese has said he will make the case for “free and fair trade” with America in an upcoming call with the US president, Donald Trump.
President Trump told reporters on Monday that he would impose tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports into the US, on top of existing metal duties. When asked which countries would be subject to the trade barriers, Trump replied: “Everybody.”
“Any steel coming into the United States is going to have a 25% tariff,” Trump said, adding aluminium imports would also be subject to the same figure.
The Albanese government has been bracing for such a decision, with senior ministers and officials working behind the scenes for some time to secure tariff exemptions on Australian exports as were achieved during Trump’s first term in office.
The trade minister, Don Farrell, and his colleagues had been seeking to make Australia’s case to avoid such tariffs, with representations made at high levels for exemptions. The defence minister, Richard Marles, was in the US over the weekend meeting with senior Trump officials.
In parliament on Monday, the prime minister said he had an upcoming call with Trump where they would discuss the trade concerns. It’s understood the call had been previously scheduled and was not in direct response to Monday’s tariff news.
“We will continue to make the case to the United States for Australia to be given an exemption to any steel or aluminium tariffs,” Albanese said.
“We regard this as also being in the US national interest as well. Tariffs, of course, don’t tax us; they tax big purchasers of our products. That’s something which is very clear.”
Farrell said in a statement: “The Albanese Labor government has been working hard from day one, standing up for Australia’s interests. We have shown how effective we are in dealing with our major international partners.”
“We have consistently made the case for free and fair trade, including access into the US market for Australian steel and aluminium.”
Farrell had said publicly that his mission to avoid tariffs on Australian goods had been made harder because his US trade counterpart had not been confirmed by the US Senate.
Trump, during his first term, imposed tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminium, but later granted several trading partners duty-free quotas, including Australia, when Malcolm Turnbull was prime minister.
Guardian Australia revealed last week that Australian officials grappled with the incoming US president’s “unclear” trade proposals in the wake of his election victory.
Documents obtained under freedom of information found officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade had recommended talking points emphasising Australia bought more products from America than it exported, and Albanese government ministers have stressed the economic benefits of the Australia-US trade relationship.
The opposition’s trade spokesperson, Kevin Hogan, said the Labor government must move more strongly to seek special treatment over the looming steel and aluminium tariffs.
“It is time critical the Labor government ensures an exemption for Australia,” Hogan said.
Hogan pointed to the Turnbull government’s work in securing tariff carve-outs in 2017 in Trump’s first term.
“A critical component was a strong ambassador – we had ambassador [Joe] Hockey who helped Australia to successfully negotiate exemptions from United States steel and aluminium tariffs,” he said.
“The ambassador to the US is one of the most critical diplomatic roles Australia has. Albanese handpicked Kevin Rudd for this position. Albanese and Rudd have a big job to do here.”
Shares in Australia’s biggest steel producer, BlueScope, rallied after investors bet that the company’s large US operations would protect it from fallout linked to the tariffs.
While BlueScope is best known in Australia for its Port Kembla steelworks, south of Sydney, the company generates more revenue from its North American operations than in Australia, according to its most recent financials.
It has a large presence in Ohio, and could therefore end up a beneficiary of a tariff regime that hinders rivals.
Its shares were up 4% earlier on Monday, in response to Trump’s announcement. A BlueScope spokesperson said the company would “continue to work with the Trump administration and the Australian government, as we await further details”.
Steel fabricator Bisalloy did not fare so well on Monday morning, with its shares falling 4% in early trading.
The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.25% by late morning, tracking a sell-off on Wall Street on Friday. The tariff announcement likely created further uncertainty for traders, weighing on overall market sentiment.
