Anthony Albanese says steel and aluminium tax exemption ‘under consideration’ by Donald Trump
Donald Trump has signed an executive order locking in a 25 per cent tariff on steel and aluminium imported to the US, moments after Anthony Albanese urged him to spare Australia.
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Australia has been hit with Donald Trump’s sweeping steel and aluminium tariffs but the US President has agreed to give “great consideration” to exempting our exports.
Moments after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Mr Trump would consider sparing Australia from the 25 per cent tariffs, the President signed the order with “no exceptions, no nothing”.
“This is a big deal. This is the beginning of making America rich again,” he said.
Speaking in the Oval Office, Mr Trump acknowledged Australia could yet be carved out of the tariffs, saying Mr Albanese was “a very fine man” after their call.
“We have a surplus with Australia, one of the few,” he told reporters, acknowledging America’s two-to-one trade surplus.
“The reason is they buy a lot of airplanes. They’re rather far away and they need lots of airplanes.”
“We actually have a surplus. It’s one of the only countries which we do. And I told him that that’s something that we’ll give great consideration to.”
Moments earlier, Anthony Albanese said Mr Trump was considering a request to grant Australia an exemption from proposed tariffs on steel and aluminium imports following what the Prime Minister described as a “warm” phone call between the pair.
Mr Albanese spoke with the US leader for just under 40 minutes on Tuesday morning Australian time in what had been a pre-scheduled discussion that took on extra significance after Mr Trump floated his plan to introduce a 25 per cent import tax on steel and aluminium the day before.
“I presented Australia’s case for an exemption, and we agreed on wording to say publicly, which is that the US President agreed that an exemption was under consideration in the interests of both of our countries,” he said.
The PM confirmed he also discussed the AUKUS agreement, critical minerals, and trade with Mr Trump, while the pair also covered lighter topics such as how Jordan Mailata had become the first Australian to play in and win a Super Bowl.
Mr Albanese said he and Mr Trump planned to “get together at the Quad or before” and that they would have more one-on-one discussions.
Mr Albanese said he would continue to discuss the tariffs exemption with Mr Trump and other US officials in the coming days, describing Australia’s relationship with the US as “in good shape”.
“We’ll continue to engage diplomatically, and we will use all of the human assets at our disposal. Australians will always stand up for Australia’s interests, and we will do that – we’ll continue to put the case,” he said.
“When you look at the imports of these products into the US, it’s about one per cent of imports of steel, two per cent of aluminium. Our steel is an important input for US manufacturing.
“(Australian steel producer) BlueScope is the US’ fifth-largest steelmaker. They’ve invested $5 billion in the US across a range of states.”
In the discussion about AUKUS, Mr Albanese said he told Mr Trump there was positive support for the agreement between Australia, the US and UK.
“I have no intention of speaking on behalf of President Trump – that is up to him – but, quite clearly, I’ve indicated there’s strong bipartisan support for AUKUS in Australia and in the United States.”
Earlier, Mr Albanese posted a photo during his call with Mr Trump which he described as a “great conversation”.
The prime minister said following the conversation, both countries are “committed to working constructively together to advance Australian and American interests, drive economic prosperity and face shared challenges.”
Mr Albanese, in a post on X, continued: “For decades, the Alliance between the United States and Australia has served the interests of both our nations, and supported peace, stability and growth in our region.
“I look forward to working closely with President Trump to create jobs and deliver benefits for both our nations.”
DUTTON’S RESPONSE TO US TARIFFS
Opposition leader Peter Dutton has backed Australia’s bid to gain an exemption from new US tariffs on aluminium and steel, but argued past comments about Mr Trump by senior Labor figures had “damaged” the relationship.
Although Mr Dutton said it was important Mr Trump knew there was “bipartisan” support on the tariff issue, he also doubled down on criticism of Mr Albanese and Australia’s Ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd over their past comments about the US President.
“I think it’s a statement of fact that the Prime Minister has made the relationship more difficult through his previous comments, the comments of (Foreign Minister) Penny Wong and the comments, obviously, of Ambassador Rudd, which were deeply personal in nature. The President will have noticed those comments,” he said.
“But what’s important now is that the Trump Administration hears that there is a bipartisan position in Australia to stand up for our national interest and that national interest is best served by a removal of the tariff as it applies to Australia, and if it stays in place, then I think it damages the relationship and I’ve been very clear about that.”
Mr Dutton denied he risked Australia’s national interest by repeatedly accusing Labor of having damaged the relationship with Mr Trump.
“You can’t just brush over the history of the judgements that the Prime Minister’s made,” he said.
‘INSULT TO AUSTRALIA’
Earlier, Mr Trump’s move to whack Australian steel and aluminium with painful tariffs was blasted as an “insult” by the co-chair of the congressional Friends of Australia Caucus.
Democratic congressman Joe Courtney urged the President to back down on the “completely needless” attack on America’s trade relationship with one of its closest allies.
“By all the measurements that President Trump talks about on trade issues, that we’re being ripped off by other countries, in this case every one of those arguments fails,” he said.
“We will do everything we can to make sure that this administration changes course and treats our friends and our allies with the respect that they deserve.”
While other countries threatened to retaliate and stock markets were rattled, the President’s National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett declared the tariffs were a “high priority” to boost domestic manufacturing.
“President Trump has made it clear that an important part of an ‘America First’ golden age is steel production,” he said.
Australia’s then-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull managed to convince Mr Trump to exempt Australian steel and aluminium from the sweeping tariffs he imposed in his first term.
Those tariffs were partially wound back by the Biden administration, with Mr Hassett saying they had been “overwhelmed with waivers”.
“And so President Trump, as he can do, is like, ‘let’s just stop the waivers’,” he told CNBC.
National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett: "President Trump has made it clear that an important part of an America First Golden Age is steel production." pic.twitter.com/xl9pxHVTP4
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) February 10, 2025
The President’s key economic adviser had been a guest at a gala dinner at the Australian embassy late last month, where Australia’s ambassador to the US Kevin Rudd used a speech to make the case for an exemption from any new tariffs.
Mr Trump did back down from tariffs he had threatened to implement on all imports from Canada and Mexico, after both countries agreed to bolster efforts to tackle drug trafficking.
But Republican senator Bernie Moreno suggested that while those “punitive tariffs” could be negotiated, the new product-specific tariffs were more likely to stay in place “long-term”.
“The structural tariffs are going to be a reality,” the Ohio senator told the Wall Street Journal.
Mr Courtney, speaking in the House of Representatives, pointed out that the US had a trade surplus with Australia and that no tariffs had applied under a free trade deal since 2005.
He criticised the President’s decision that came two days after Mr Trump’s Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth hailed the importance of the alliance and backed the AUKUS military pact in a meeting in Washington DC with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles.
“Australia is a key strategic ally for our country. They are positioned in the Indo-Pacific at a place where tensions are sky-high, and we need their input, their help, in terms of making sure that we are going to rebalance that security environment and protect the rule of the law,” Mr Courtney said.
“Instead, what we’re seeing is a completely needless almost insult to the people of Australia by raising tariffs on Australian products coming into this country.”
TRUMP’S CALL WITH ALBO SCHEDULED PRIOR TO TARIFF PLEDGE
Australia’s Health Minister Mark Butler has reaffirmed that Anthony Albanese’s call with the US president was scheduled before Donald Trump announced his plan to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports.
“This was a call scheduled before the announcement from Donald Trump on the way to the Super Bowl about tariffs on steel and aluminium,” he told ABC’s News Breakfast on Tuesday.
“The timing is important so the PM can make the case strongly to the US president that there should be an exemption on Australian exports.
“We know that steel and aluminium exports into the US market feed directly into their supply chain.
“They’re good for American jobs. It’s a case we’ve made in the past to the US administration, and the PM … will be making that case very strongly some time today again.”
Meanwhile, Greens leader Adam Bandt has backed former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull’s calls for Me Albanese to push back against the tariffs while criticising the AUKUS deal.
“I’m very concerned about the impacts of Donald Trump being president. Donald Trump is dangerous – dangerous for climate, dangerous for peace, and dangerous for democracy,” Mr Bandt told ABC News Breakfast.
“Today, it’s steel and aluminium, and who knows what it’s going to be tomorrow?”
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Originally published as Anthony Albanese says steel and aluminium tax exemption ‘under consideration’ by Donald Trump
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