U.S. Government Implements Section 232 Copper Tariffs

As Connecting the Dots reported last week, the Trump administration had floated news that it would impose Section 232 tariffs on copper imports into the United States starting some time in August. At the time, however, the White House had not issued a formal order implementing that policy. That order came last week, however, and it means that, as of Aug. 1, 2025, copper imports from all U.S. trading partners will face a 50 percent tariff rate.

The presidential proclamation implementing the policy did not list specific products for which the tariffs would apply, but a White House fact sheet described the scope as:

• Semifinished copper products like copper pipes, wires, and sheets; and
• Copper-intensive derivative products like pipe fittings, cables, and electrical components.

Unlike Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum, copper input materials such as copper ores, concentrates, mattes, cathodes, and anodes, along with copper scrap, will not be subject to tariffs. The proclamation directs the U.S. Secretary of Commerce to establish a process within 90 days to consider adding derivative copper products to the scope of the tariff, similar to the process established for aluminum and steel. The White House also instructed the U.S. Department of Commerce to monitor imports of copper and derivatives going forward and will “from time to time” inform the president of further necessary action.

The presidential proclamation, available at this link, cited Commerce Department findings that foreign competitors have used “state subsidies and overproduction” to outcompete domestic U.S. suppliers and that U.S. dependence on foreign sources of copper has created “strategic vulnerabilities and jeopardizes the U.S. defense industrial base.”