Category: Trade & Tariffs

Today, President Trump signed an executive order intended to increase US-based mining, refining, and production of critical minerals and “derivative products”.  The executive order calls on federal agencies prioritize permitting, financing, land availability, and regulatory approvals for such projects. 

On February 21, 2025, the President Trump ordered three additional steps to implement the America First Trade Policy announced on January 20, 2025.

Articles that are the products of China, which hereinafter will include products of Hong Kong in accordance with Executive Order 13936 on Hong Kong Normalization ( See 85 FR 43413 (July 17, 2020)), excluding those encompassed by 50 U.S.C. 1702(b), that are entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on February 4, 2025, will be subject to the additional ad valorem rate of duty provided for in new HTSUS heading 9903.01.20, except that goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, after 12:01 a.m. eastern standard time on February 4, 2025, that were loaded onto a vessel at the port of loading, or in transit on the final mode of transport prior to entry into the United States, before 12:01 a.m. eastern time on February 1, 2025, shall not be subject to such additional duty only if the importer certifies to CBP that the goods so qualify by declaring new HTSUS heading 9903.01.23 as described in the annex to this notice.

On February 21, 2025, the President Trump ordered three additional steps to implement the America First Trade Policy announced on January 20, 2025.

On February 21, 2025, the President Trump ordered three additional steps to implement the America First Trade Policy announced on January 20, 2025.

On 10 February 2025, President Trump announced that he was increasing tariffs on US imports of aluminum from 10% to 25% and ending various exemptions and exclusions to the US tariffs of 25% on imports of steel. The tariffs were first imposed in President Trump’s first term under the authority of Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which permits the President to impose import restrictions (tariffs and/or quotas) based on an investigation and affirmative determination by the US Commerce Department that certain imports threaten to impair US national security. Section 232 tariffs on aluminum and steel were originally imposed by President Trump in 2018 and continued under President Biden.

The key takeaways are: No additional tariffs immediately; US trade agencies (primarily Commerce and USTR) are to study tariffs imposed by other countries on U.S. exports and recommend whether the US should impose comparable tariffs against US imports from those countries. 

  On February 5, 2025, the Secretary of Homeland Security issued a notice in the Federal Register (90 FR 9038), “Implementation of Additional Duties on Products of the People’s Republic of China Pursuant to the President’s February 1, 2025 Executive Order Imposing Duties to Address the Synthetic Opioid Supply Chain in the People’s Republic of China.