[WASHINGTON, NEW YORK] US tariffs on copper imports could be coming within several weeks, months earlier than the deadline for a decision, according to sources familiar with the matter. Copper traded in New York rose to a record.
US President Donald Trump in February directed the Commerce Department to open an investigation into potential copper tariffs and submit a report within 270 days, though it’s now expected to be resolved sooner, said the sources who asked not to be identified because the discussions are confidential.
The investigation already is looking like little more than a formality, some of the sources said, with Trump having regularly said he plans to impose the tariffs.
The administration is proceeding expeditiously with the review, and a conclusion could be possible well before the 270-day deadline, an official familiar with the process said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The White House declined to comment. In February, Peter Navarro, a White House trade adviser, said the investigation would proceed quickly.
“You will see our new secretary of commerce, Howard Lutnick, will move in what I like to call Trump time, which is as quickly as possible to get results of the investigation on the president’s desk for possible action,” Navarro said.
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Trump has threatened to impose a duty of as much as 25 per cent on all copper imports, a move that could roil the global market for one of the world’s most ubiquitous metals, which is used in pipes and electrical cables.
Implementing copper tariffs with such haste would stand in stark contrast to the investigations that preceded steel and aluminium tariffs imposed by Trump during his first administration. They took some 10 months to complete.
Copper in New York rose as much as 3.1 per cent to a record of US$5.3740 a pound, before paring its gain to around US$5.3005 a pound. The benchmark price in London fell slightly to US$10,100 a tonne, widening the gap between the two contracts to more than US$1,600 a tonne.
“Copper is rising quickly, especially in New York, to price in the upcoming 25 per cent tariffs,” said Xu Wanqiu, an analyst at Cofco Futures. “Now the risk is prices will quickly retreat if the tariffs are short of 25 per cent,” she said.
The large price differential between London and New York created a worldwide dash among traders and dealers to ship the red metal to America to capture a lucrative premium. Such a move has left the rest of the world, especially top consumer China, short of the metal.
The president, in his Mar 5 address to a joint session of Congress, stirred uncertainty when he sought to defend his tariffs. Trump said he had imposed a 25 per cent tariff on foreign aluminium, steel, lumber and copper – a possible slip of the tongue given he only set in motion a formal copper investigation weeks prior.
Analysts at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup in notes to clients have said they expect the US will impose a 25 per cent copper tariff by year’s end. The world’s largest copper-trading firm, Trafigura, has said the price could hit US$12,000, from about US$10,000 currently. BLOOMBERG
