President Trump has signed an order March 8 to impose a 25% tariff on steel imports and a 10% tariff on aluminum imports that is scheduled to be effective in 15 days. The formal details for the implementation are not yet available but will most likely be based on the investigations by the Dept of Commerce earlier this year. Both the full report from the investigation and also the excerpt for the affected steel/aluminum HTS classifications are included below.
From the Section 232 reports (https://www.commerce.gov/news/press-releases/2018/02/secretary-ross-releases-steel-and-aluminum-232-reports-coordination
Steel:
- PRODUCT SCOPE OF THE INVESTIGATION
For this report, the product scope covers steel mill products (“steel”) which are defined at the Harmonized System (“HS”) 6-digit level as:
720610 through 721650, 721699 through 730110, 730210, 730240 through 730290, and 730410 through 730690, including any subsequent revisions to these HS codes. The following discontinued HS codes have been included for purposes of reporting historical data (prior to 2007): 722520, 722693, 722694, 722910, 730410, 730421, 730610, 730620, and 730660.
These steel products are all produced by U.S. steel companies and support various applications across the defense, critical infrastructure, and commercial sectors. Generally, these products fall into one of the following five product categories (including but not limited to):
(1) Carbon and Alloy Flat Product (Flat Products): Produced by rolling semifinished steel through varying sets of rolls. Includes sheets, strips, and plates.
Flat products are covered under the following 6-digit HS codes: 720810, 720825, 720826, 720827, 720836, 720837, 720838, 720839, 720840, 720851, 720852, 720853, 720854, 720890, 720915, 720916, 720917, 720918, 720925, 720926, 720927, 720928, 720990, 721011, 721012, 721020, 721030, 721041, 721049, 721050, 721061, 721069, 721070, 721090, 721113, 721114, 721119, 721123, 721129, 721190, 721210, 721220, 721230, 721240, 721250, 721260, 722511, 722519, 722530, 722540, 722550, 722591, 722592, 722599, 722611, 722619, 722691, 722692, 722693, 722694, 722699
(2) Carbon and Alloy Long Products (Long Products): Steel products that fall outside the flat products category. Includes bars, rails, rods, and beams.
Long products are covered under the following 6-digit HS codes: 721310, 721320, 721391, 721399, 721410, 721420, 721430, 721491, 721499, 721510, 721550,721590, 721610, 721621, 721622, 721631, 721632, 721633, 721640, 721650, 721699, 721710, 721720, 721730, 721790, 722520, 722620,722710, 722720, 722790, 722810, 722820, 722830, 722840, 722850, 722860, 722870, 722880, 722910,722920, 722990, 730110, 730210, 730240, 730290
(3) Carbon and Alloy Pipe and Tube Products (Pipe and Tube Products): Either seamless or welded pipe and tube products. Some of these products may include stainless as well as alloy other than stainless.
Pipe and Tube products are covered under the following 6-digit HS codes: 730410, 730419, 730421, 730423, 730429, 730431, 730439, 730451, 730459, 730490, 730511, 730512, 730519, 730520, 730531, 730539, 730590, 730610, 730619, 730620, 730629, 730630, 730650, 730660, 730661, 730669, 730690
(4) Carbon and Alloy Semi-finished Products (Semi-finished Products): The initial, intermediate solid forms of molten steel, to be re-heated and further forged, rolled, shaped, or otherwise worked into finished steel products. Includes blooms, billets, slabs, ingots, and steel for castings.
Semi-finished products are covered under the following 6-digit HS codes: 720610, 720690, 720711, 720712, 720719, 720720, 722410, 722490
(5) Stainless Products: Steel products, in flat-rolled, long, pipe and tube, and semi-finished forms, containing at minimum 10.5 percent chromium and, by weight, 1.2 percent or less of carbon, offering better corrosion resistance than other steel.
Stainless steel products are covered under the following 6-digit HS codes: 721810, 721891, 721899, 721911, 721912, 721913, 721914, 721921, 721922, 721923, 721924, 721931, 721932, 721933, 721934, 721935, 721990, 722011, 722012, 722020, 722090, 722100, 722211, 722219, 722220, 722230, 722240, 722300, 730411, 730422, 730424, 730441, 730449, 730611, 730621, 730640
Aluminum:
- PRODUCT SCOPE OF THE INVESTIGATION
For this report, aluminum is defined at the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) 4-digit level. The HTS codes covered by this report are listed in Table 2. In addition, two HTS codes at the ten digit level are included, covering aluminum castings and forgings.
Table 2 ‐ Harmonized Tariff Schedule For Aluminum Products
HTS Code Description
7601 Unwrought aluminum
7604 Aluminum bars, rods and profiles
7605 Aluminum wire
7606 Aluminum plates, sheets, and strip, of a thickness exceeding 0.2mm*
7607 Aluminum foil (whether or not printed, or backed with paper, paperboard, plastics or similar backing materials) of a thickness (excluding any backing) not exceeding 0.2mm
7608 Aluminum tubes and pipes
7609 Aluminum tube and pipe fittings
7616.99.51.60 Other articles of aluminum: castings
7616.99.51.70 Other articles of aluminum: forgings
*Note: This category includes can sheet for aluminum can packaging.
Source: U.S. International Trade Commission
The scope of this investigation does not include bauxite or alumina, which are feedstocks for production of primary (unwrought) aluminum. Also excluded from analysis are aluminum waste and scrap (HTS 7602) and aluminum powders and flakes (HTS 7603) as these represent different industrial sectors.
