Imported steel and aluminum already subject to a 25% tariff are excluded from President Trump's new levies, providing some relief for metal buyers that would have faced significantly higher prices, but the new tariffs nevertheless will raise the cost of raw materials for steelmakers that operate electric arc furnaces,

Imported steel and aluminum already subject to a 25% tariff will be excluded from the new tariffs President Trump announced Wednesday. Trump last month increased and expanded the tariffs on imported steel and aluminum that he began in 2018.

For years, however, U.S. production of critical metals has lagged, allowing China to become a juggernaut; the country now produces more than half of the world’s steel and aluminum.