The proposed Section 232 investigation remedies by the United States Commerce Department are being felt in the global market, with the common theme being a reorganization of the world's supply chains to remove the US from the trade flow.
North America One of the biggest question marks in North America related to the Section 232 recommendations is what any of them - if implemented - will mean for shipments of Canadian aluminium. Canada delivered 2.46 million tonnes of unwrought aluminium to the US last year, accounting for 50.4% of all US imports under the 7601 HTS code. By comparison, next largest supplier Russia shipped 693,126 tonnes, representing only 14.2% of total imports of the product for the year. Canada is currently part of the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta), which creates a duty-free trade bloc between the three countries. Under this agreement, Canada is able to send its aluminium from such smelters as Rio Tinto Plc's Kitimat in British Columbia to cover for a natural shortage of primary aluminium in the US. But the full 232 report submitted to US President Donald Trump does not make any allowance for excluding either Nafta partner from...