On July 9, US President Donald Trump declared a 50% duty on copper imports into the US. Additionally, Trump has threatened to levy 200% tariffs on pharmaceutical imports after a year.
Trump’s action may have an effect on other economies, such as India, which exports these vital commodities to other nations, even if his goal was to increase the US’s production and manufacturing of these goods.
One of the biggest manufacturers of generic medications and a newcomer to the copper-based product manufacturing industry, India exports pharmaceutical products to western countries like the US.
Even though India and the US are nearing the end of their bilateral trade talks, the tariffs on pharmaceuticals and copper are predicted to cause disruptions in the industrial supply chains, where India wants to take the lead.
Tariffs Placed After National Security Assessment –Trump
After conducting a comprehensive national security analysis, the US president announced a 50% tariff on copper imports that would take effect on August 1. According to Trump’s post on Truth Social, the Department of Defence uses copper the second most.
He went on to say that the metal is utilised in important fields, including semiconductors, aeroplanes, and ammunition, which includes missile defence systems and hypersonic weaponry.
Trump threatened to impose a 200% tax rate on pharmaceutical imports into the US during a meeting of the US Cabinet earlier this week.
He stated that taxes would be applied gradually. “There are going to be tariffs at a very high rate, like 200%,” he remarked. “We’ll give them a specific amount of time to sort things out. “I’ll give them a year or a year and a half,” Trump added. The statements are just one more step in Trump’s protectionist agenda, which is spreading to other industries and areas.
Copper Tariff to Impact India
According to a media report, India’s global copper and copper product exports in the fiscal year 2024–2025 totalled around $2 billion, of which $360 million, or about 17%, came from the US. India is the third-largest market for US copper exports, behind China and Saudi Arabia.
Global supply networks are predicted to be disrupted if Trump’s administration increases its own copper mining and begins to hoard the metal, which might raise prices and manufacturing costs in India. Industry executives, however, contend that since India lacks copper, the impact of such a policy would be minimal.
According to a news agency, India imported one million tonnes of copper concentrate in 2023, with a sizable amount of these imports originating from a small number of nations, including Indonesia, Chile, and Peru.
Leave a Reply