Australia to Receive No Exemption from 25 Percent Steel, Aluminium Tariffs
The decision means approximately $1 billion worth of Australian steel and aluminium exports to the US will now be subject to the full 25 percent tariff.
The verdict is in.
Australia will not be granted an exemption from the 25 percent tariffs on aluminium and steel imports imposed by the United States, the White House has confirmed.
Despite former U.S. President Donald Trump saying his administration would seriously consider excluding Australia from the levies, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt revealed no exemption would be made.
“He considered it, and considered against it. There will be no exemptions,” she told the ABC.
Pressed on the reasoning, Leavitt responded, “America First steel.”
She added, “If they want to be exempted, they should consider moving steel manufacturing here.”
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The decision means approximately $1 billion worth of Australian steel and aluminium exports to the United States will now be subject to the full 25 percent tariff.
According to United Nations COMTRADE data, Australian iron and steel exports to the United States are valued at approximately $378 million (US$237 million), while aluminium exports are worth around $503 million.
However, that still amounts to only 1 percent of steel imports, and 2 percent of aluminium.
Further, Australia’s largest steel manufacturer, BlueScope, largely circumvented the last set of tariffs during the first Trump administration by investing in production facilities in the United States.
Australia is the world’s sixth-largest aluminium producer.
Pressure on Albanese Government
Politically, the rejection of an exemption has put pressure on the Albanese Labor government, which had been lobbying for an exemption, citing the close U.S.-Australia ties, and the fact that the United States actually has a trade surplus with Australia.
Hopes for an exemption were initially raised when Trump assured Prime Minister Anthony Albanese that Australia would receive “great consideration” following a cordial phone conversation.
Former Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross couched those remarks, noting any trade advantage to Australia was largely due to its production of “green steel,” which the United States was not fully capable of yet.
Peter Navarro, White House Senior Counselor for Trade and Manufacturing, speaks to reporters outside the White House in Washington, D.C. on Feb. 11, 2025. Win McNamee/Getty Images
Initial Response
Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles described the decision as an act of “economic self-harm” and expressed disappointment.
Speaking to 2GB radio, Marles said, “Obviously, it’s really disappointing news. Tariffs don’t make any sense. It’s an act of kind of economic self-harm.”
Marles acknowledged that Australia had diversified its trade partnerships and would find alternative markets for its steel and aluminium, but reiterated that the government would continue pushing for an exemption.
He also pointed out that during Trump’s first term, former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull had successfully negotiated an exemption after months of lobbying.
Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles speaks during a bilateral meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia on Feb. 7, 2025. Alex Wong/Getty Images
“So we’ll keep pressing the case,” Marles added.
Housing Minister Clare O’Neil also insisted that the Australian government was still actively working to overturn the decision.
“We’re still in a discussion with the U.S. government about this,” she told Channel Seven.
“So I’m not going to accept this as the situation yet. We still have a little bit of time and lots of discussions continuing to happen.”
Foreign Minister Penny Wong admitted two weeks ago that Australia had “a hill to climb” in convincing Washington to reverse its decision.
US Trade Adviser Stands by His Position
Navarro stood by his earlier position on Australia allegedly misusing its past exemption—a claim the Australian government vehemently denies.
“There were many country exemptions given, not just to Australia but to many other countries, and every single country abused those exemptions,” he told ABC on March 12.
“The collective result was to weaken the tariffs to the point that they simply didn’t provide any protection anymore.”
He reinforced that the administration’s new policy was “no exemptions, no exclusions” unless Trump decided otherwise.
“It’s because when we were kind enough as a country to make those kinds of gestures to our friends, they bit the hand that fed them, and that’s not going to happen again,” Navarro said.
Australia’s Trade Minister Don Farrell rejected claims that aluminium exports harmed the U.S. market, arguing the increase in trade volume was approved by Washington, and that companies had complied with all reporting obligations across steel and agriculture sectors.
Opposition Hones in on Albanese Government’s Approach
Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton said there was a “bipartisan position in relation to tariffs,” but still criticised the Albanese government for its approach.
He accused them of being “scared” of Trump and failing to “pick up the phone.”
Deputy Opposition Leader Sussan Ley put the blame squarely on the prime minister for not building a “personal relationship” with Trump.
“The prime minister is to blame for not doing every single thing that he could have done,” she told Sky News.
She said that when Turnbull secured an exemption, “we did have that personal relationship, we did have those face-to-face meetings, and we did secure the exemption that was in our country’s interests.”
“None of that has happened now,” she said.
