US Plans to Cut Aluminum Tariffs because of Burden on People

JAKARTA - US President Donald Trump plans to cut certain tariffs on steel and aluminum products over warnings that the tariffs will burden American consumers.

According to a report in the Financial Times newspaper, officials from the US Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative agreed that tariffs directly affected consumers, including a surge in prices for cake pans, as well as cans of drinks and food.

This is in contrast to Trump's claim that the duties will be borne by foreign companies and not US residents.

The report also said the Trump administration was reviewing the list of goods subject to tariffs, aiming to exclude certain goods, stop the expansion of the list, and pursue more targeted national security investigations on certain products.

In April 2025, Trump imposed US tariffs on goods from 185 countries and territories.

Previously, in February 2025, Trump ordered the imposition of a 25 percent tariff on aluminum imports, which took effect on March 12, 2025 for all suppliers without broad exceptions. In June 2025, the interest rate for aluminum and its derivatives was then raised to 50 percent.