Seeking new trade deals, Trump reconsiders tariffs on metal, auto industries


The self-proclaimed "Tariff Man" is slowing down a bit.
President Trump scaled back on the global trade war on Friday, lifting tariffs on metal imports from Canada and Mexico and delaying for six months a decision to impose tariffs on automobiles from Europe, Japan, and other countries. Canada and Mexico reportedly agreed to remove all retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods, in turn.
Trump had previously described the metal tariffs as a source of leverage during negotiations for a new free trade agreement to replace NAFTA, but a bipartisan refusal to sign off on such a deal until the tariffs were lifted reportedly swayed Trump.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
As for the auto tariffs, Trump will once again decide whether to implement them in November as he seeks new agreements with the European Union and Japan. The decisions will also allow Trump and his administration to focus more heavily on reaching a trade agreement with China, though Trump has not backed down from imposing tariffs on Chinese goods, despite the fallout they have caused for many American farmers, The New York Times reports.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
Five policies from the Tory conference
Party leader Kemi Badenoch has laid out the Conservative plan for a potential future government
-
A House of Dynamite: a ‘nail-biting’ nuclear-strike thriller
The Week Recommends ‘Virtuoso talent’ Kathryn Bigelow directs a ‘fast-paced’ and ‘tense’ ‘symphony of dread’
-
The Finest Hotel in Kabul: a ‘haunting’ history of modern Afghanistan
The Week Recommends Lyse Doucet’s sensitively written work traces over 50 years of Kabul’s ‘Inter-Con’ hotel
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial unease
Speed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B deal
speed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fine
Speed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in Intel
Speed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
-
US to take 15% cut of AI chip sales to China
Speed Read Nvidia and AMD will pay the Trump administration 15% of their revenue from selling artificial intelligence chips to China
-
NFL gets ESPN stake in deal with Disney
Speed Read The deal gives the NFL a 10% stake in Disney's ESPN sports empire and gives ESPN ownership of NFL Network
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance