US President Donald Trump’s decision to levy import tariffs on steel and aluminium typifies the administration’s scattergun approach to trade policy: many victims, a lot of friendly fire and hitting all the wrong targets.
It is unclear whether the new tariffs will affect Australian steel imports. Australia exports relatively small volumes of steel and aluminium (worth about A$450 million a year) to the US, but firms such as Bluescope and steelworkers in Port Kembla rely heavily upon access to the American market.
