President Trump said he would sign an order imposing a 25% tariff on steel imports and a 10% tariff on aluminium imports next week.
The plan was immediately condemned by Beer Institute president/CEO Jim McGreevy, who said the result will be an increase in the cost of aluminium in the U.S., endangering American jobs in the beer industry and throughout the supply chain. More than half of all beer produced in the U.S. today is pack in aluminium cans or aluminium bottles, he said.
“According to third-party analyses, this 10% tariff will create a new $347.7 million tax on America’s beverage industry, including brewers and beer importers, and result in the loss of 20,291 American jobs. We appreciate the many members of Congress—both Republicans and Democrats—as well members of the cabinet who spoke out against imposing this tariff, many of whom specifically cited their concerns for how this tariff would negatively impact America’s beer industry,” McGreevy said, adding:
“Imported aluminum used to make beer cans is not a threat to national security. The largest importer of aluminum to the United States is Canada—one of America’s strongest allies. We urge the Department of Commerce to exclude imported aluminum and cansheet used to make beer cans from these tariffs so as not to unnecessarily increase costs on American businesses and put jobs at risk.”
MillerCoors blasted the decision, saying the Defense Department recently said aluminum doesn’t cause any national security issues. “We buy as much domestic can sheet aluminum as is available,” the company said in a tweet. “However, there simply isn’t enough supply to satisfy the demands of American beverage makes like us. American workers and American consumers will suffer as a result of this misguided tariff.”
Anheuser-Busch InBev CEO Carlos Brito said any policies should encourage people to invest in the U.S. and boost employment. Otherwise, he said, “it’s going to be something that’s going to put jobs at risk and would be against the U.S. consumer.”
A Commerce Department report issued Feb. 16 found aluminum imports have risen to 90% of total demand for primary aluminum, up from 66% in 2012.
It also found that from 2013 to 2016, aluminum industry employment in the U.S. fell 58%, six smelters shut down, and only two of the remaining five smelters are operating at capacity, even though demand has grown.
The report also noted that the Commerce Department has recently brought trade cases to address the dumping of aluminum. Indeed, as of Feb. 15, the U.S. had two antidumping and countervailing duty orders in place on aluminum, both against China, and there are four ongoing investigations against China.