Biden, in first trade move, reimposes a Trump tariff

 

In one of his first trade actions, President Joe Biden on Monday night reinstated a 10 percent duty on aluminum imports from the United Arab Emirates that President Donald Trump removed just one day before leaving office.

"I consider it is necessary and appropriate in light of our national security interests to maintain, at this time, the tariff treatment applied to aluminum article imports from the United Arab Emirates," Biden said in a new proclamation.

What it could mean: The move may indicate that Biden, a Democrat, is eager to demonstrate his toughness on trade to deny Republicans any opening to outflank him on the issue as Trump managed to do against Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election.

The bigger picture: The move casts a pall over the hopes in the business sector in the U.S. and in Europe that Biden would roll back the tariffs that Trump put on steel and aluminum imports using Section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act. That provision allows the president to restrict imports to protect national security.

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