Blow to Labor’s hopes as US seeks ‘across the world’ tariffs

Tom McIlroy, John Kehoe and Jessica Sier

Feb 28, 2025 – 6.00pm

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Canberra/Tokyo | Labor’s push for an exemption from Donald Trump’s looming steel and aluminium tariffs has been dealt a fresh blow after his newly appointed Commerce Secretary warned that the US president wanted a globally consistent regime with the sole focus of boosting America’s economy.

As the Albanese government dampens expectations that Australia could be spared from Trump’s imposition of 25 per cent tariffs, due to come into force on March 12, Howard Lutnick said the president had taught him everything he knew about tariffs and the pair wanted punitive treatment of imports from “across the world”.

Tom McIlroy is the Financial Review’s Canberra bureau chief based in the press gallery at Parliament House. He was previously the AFR’s political correspondent.

John Kehoe is economics editor at Parliament House, Canberra. He writes on economics, politics and business. John was Washington correspondent covering Donald Trump’s first election. He joined the Financial Review in 2008 from Treasury.

Jessica Sier is the North Asia Correspondent for The Australian Financial Review. She is based in Tokyo, Japan. Jessica has previously written on technology, global capital markets and economics.