The US will apply national security tariffs to some steel and aluminium imports from Mexico in a bid to stop Chinese metal entering the US across the southern border.
The White House said duties of 25 per cent would apply to any steel entering the US from Mexico that was not melted and poured in North America, while aluminium from Mexico that contained primary smelt from China, Belarus, Iran or Russia would face tariffs of 10 per cent.
The move, which follows a series of tariff increases on Chinese goods, is an attempt by the Biden administration to shore up support in former industrial heartlands, where he is losing ground to Republican rival Donald Trump in this year’s presidential election.