WTO rules against Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs

By PAUL WISEMAN
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The World Trade Organization has rejected the 2018 import taxes that then-President Donald Trump imposed on foreign steel and aluminum, saying they violated global trade rules. Trump’s tariffs of 25% on foreign steel and 10% on aluminum outraged America’s long-standing allies, including the European Union and Japan. That’s because he relied on a little-used provision of U.S. trade law to declare their steel and aluminum a threat to U.S. national security. China and other trading partners challenged the tariffs at the 164-nation WTO. In a ruling issued Friday, the organization said it was not persuaded that the United States faced an international emergency that would justify the tariffs.