An aluminum product valued at $500 could owe $1,000 in new U.S. tariffs, $250, $125 or just $50. Which bill lands depends on where the metal was melted, poured, smelted or cast, and whether the importer can prove it.
That spread comes from two proclamations President Trump issued on April 2. One adjusts existing Section 232 tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper. The other imposes new tariffs on certain patented pharmaceutical products.
Metals: duties on the full product
The first change is the base. Section 232 duties on steel, aluminum and copper are now collected on the full value of metal articles, at rates from 10% to 50% depending on the metal and where it was made. Until now importers owed duty only on the value of the metal content inside certain items. Sourcemap, a supply chain software firm that analyzed the orders, said that raises the potential cost to importers considerably, depending on where their goods come from.
For products under the tariff codes in Annex I-A, the rate is 50% of full value. Goods made in the United Kingdom with steel or aluminum melted, poured, smelted or cast there pay 25%. Annex I-B products carry a 25% rate, or 15% with the same U.K. origin.
U.S. metal has lost its blanket pass. Previously, any amount of U.S.-made metal in a derivative product earned a full exclusion from the tariffs. Now derivative goods made abroad entirely from U.S. melted or poured steel, or U.S. smelted or cast aluminum or copper, face a 10% tariff.
Two penalties stay harsh. A 200% duty remains on aluminum goods in which any amount was smelted or cast in Russia. Importers who cannot state the origin of their products on customs documents automatically owe 200% of full value.
Pharmaceuticals: a new target
Section 232 had applied only to metals. The new proclamation extends it to “patented pharmaceuticals and associated pharmaceutical ingredients.” Generic and biosimilar drugs are not covered.
The default tariff on covered drugs is 100%, with exceptions. Companies that have, or are likely soon to have, onshoring plans approved by the Secretary of Commerce pay 20%, rising to 100% on April 2, 2030. Companies eligible for pharmaceutical pricing agreements pay 0% until January 20, 2029, under terms in Annex II. Products from the European Union, Japan, Switzerland and Liechtenstein face 15%, and U.K. products face 10%.
The rates take effect July 31, 2026 for companies listed in Annex III and September 29, 2026 for everyone else.
What it means at the dock
Sourcemap’s worked example uses an aluminum-derived product from Annex I-A valued at $500. With unknown origin, the added tariff is $1,000. With a known origin outside the U.K., it is $250. If the aluminum was smelted and cast, and the product made, in the U.K., it is $125. If the product was made abroad entirely from U.S. smelted aluminum, it is $50.
