Chile's role as the world's leading copper producer, coupled with threats of tariffs on agricultural imports, has raised concerns about how the country could be directly affected by tariff attacks.
According to Sofofa, Chile is not currently on the radar of the United States (US) in terms of tariffs, so it is advisable to "seek not to be on it either."
The statements by the union's secretary general, Rodrigo Yánez, come in a context where the president of the United States, Donald Trump, mentioned copper tariffs in his speech before Congress, although his implementation was not explicitly confirmed.
Chile's role as the world's leading copper producer, coupled with threats of tariffs on agricultural imports, has raised concerns about how the country could be directly affected by tariff attacks.
Sofofa calls for calm over Trump tariffs
Speaking to Radio Pauta , Yáñez said that “it seems like a script is being repeated on steroids from Trump's first administration,” with measures that could even remain in place regardless of the next U.S. government.
In this regard, he warned - like other experts - that it is likely to see an impact on the country's growth figures, but with regard to the uncertainty that is produced at a global level due to Trump's measures.
Regarding copper and the antidumping investigation being carried out by the Republican government in the US, the representative of Sofofa recalled that Chile “has already faced antidumping investigations on blueberries, and we did well. The issue (…) is to defend the country and do the work that needs to be done,” he told Radio Pauta .
However, and beyond the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) that Chile has with the North American country - with the possible hope that this will "cushion" tension over copper tariffs - Yáñez reiterated that "Chile is not a threat to the United States for the reasons that matter to it today. And in the case of agriculture, it is exactly the same."
"Now, regarding the agreement, we have tools that we must use in case we have any differences with the US, but that is why it is so important to have our house in order regarding what they may ask of us," said the union's general secretary.
“Chile is not in a position to retaliate against the US, and therefore it is important to understand these subtleties and aspects other than trade, and also what positive balance Chile can bring to the table on issues that the US cares about, such as rare earths and raw materials. The United States is not able to supply itself (with copper),” he added to Radio Pauta.
And in conclusion, the representative of Sofofa said that a key element is not to overreact to Trump's announcements on tariffs, reiterating that "Chile is not on the radar today and we must not seek to be either," so in the diplomatic field prudence is key and in case of trade tensions, to use all available tools in this regard.
