A US tariff on copper would mean that the US would have to buy the mineral at a higher price, risking that its production would not increase in the short term to compensate for the impact of a tariff.
“I’m going to put tariffs on steel, on aluminum, on copper and things that we need for our military. We have to bring manufacturing back to our country,” said US President Donald Trump in late January.
The threat immediately resonated in Chile, given that copper is the country's main export product.
However, Trump's threat has not materialized for this critical mineral, but it has for steel and aluminum, with tariffs that hit Mexico and Canada in particular, where the sum of tariffs imposed by the Republican will mean that these exports will pay an extra 50% to enter the US.
Chilean government task force on Trump threats
In this regard, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that a working group would be formed to study the situation.
It was on Monday, February 3, that Foreign Minister Alberto Van Klaveren led the meeting of the aforementioned group. The meeting was attended by the Minister of Mining, Aurora Williams, the President of the Board of Directors of Codelco, Máximo Pacheco, and the Executive Vice President (s) of Cochilco, Claudia Rodríguez.
The Undersecretaries of Mining and International Economic Relations, Suina Chahuán and Clauda Sanhueza, were also present, along with the Chilean ambassador to the United States, Juan Gabriel Valdés, via telematics.
Don't overreact
According to Pulso , regarding the topics discussed, the attendees agreed that they should not overreact to the threats from the White House in order to avoid escalating a conflict that has not materialized, at least for the moment.
He also highlighted the fact that a US tariff on copper would mean that the country would have to buy the mineral at a higher price, risking that its production would not increase in the short term to compensate for the impact of a tariff.
In this regard, Pulso recalled that the US Copper Producers Association stated in a letter to Trump that the country is facing serious difficulties in terms of refining, new mines take several years to start producing and the main smelters are few, which forces the country to import a lot of copper.
The Foreign Ministry confirmed to the media that the working group is made up of the Foreign Affairs, Mining, Codelco and Cochilco ministries, with the possibility of inviting other actors.
In addition to discussing the scenarios for Chile in the event of a tariff being implemented, it was also agreed to meet periodically based on how events develop.
In addition, authorities have already met with representatives of the private sector, specifically the Undersecretary of REI, Claudia Sanhueza, and the International Committee of Sofofa, with representatives of Arauco and Tresmontes Lucchetti.
