Section 232 Tariffs: Aluminum and Steel Tariff Increase, and More from the White House on Short Notice

On Friday, May 30, 2025, President Trump announced the additional tariff rate against articles of steel and aluminum would be doubling on June 4 to 50%. Late evening on Tuesday, June 3, US Customs published details of changes, set to go into effect at 12:01am on the following day, Wednesday, June 4.

These changes, now live and in effect include, but are not limited to that substantial increase to 50% on imports of both steel and aluminum items and “steel derivatives” and “aluminum derivatives,” that is, items containing steel or aluminum components.

The announcement from CBP came with additional details on “tariff stacking” that will determine how and what additional tariffs that items subject to section 232 tariffs will be additionally subject to, and also revises the “non-stacking” guidance provided by the White House last month. The new application of additional secondary tariffs on US imports is as follows:

• Passenger vehicles, light trucks, and auto parts will be subject to the existing 25% section 232 tariff, but NOT to the opioid-associated IEEPA tariffs against items from Canada and Mexico, nor to the new 50% tariffs against steel and aluminum, even if they contain aluminum or steel
• Non-auto items made of steel or aluminum, including steel and aluminum derivatives, will be subject to the new 50% rate, but if they are made in Mexico or Canada, they will not also be subject to the 25% IEEPA opioid tariff. Note that if a derivative item’s HTS flags for both steel and aluminum derivatives, it will be subject to both against its steel and aluminum components

Finally, an additional change in the way these tariffs are assessed will contribute still further to the total additional duties against steel and aluminum items: as of June 4, steel and aluminum derivatives, which will be subject to the 50% rate against their steel and aluminum components, will be also subject to the 10% IEEPA reciprocal tariff against their non steel/aluminum value.

All of these changes will represent a substantial increase in duties across a broad swath of US imports and associated goods and industries, and may oblige certain sourcing changes on the part of US businesses. Allyn International’s service suite includes consultation on current and developing issues in the US trade community. Reach Allyn here for a consultation or, contact us sales@allynintl.com or 239-489-9900.

Contributor: Andrew Dosher

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