The United States has lowered the preferential threshold to 85% for certain steel, aluminium and copper products.

The proclamation revises the Section 232 regimes

The presidential proclamation entitled "Further Adjusting the Tariff Regimes for Imports of Aluminum, Steel, and Copper into the United States" concerns the tariff regimes applicable to imports of aluminium, steel and copper into the United States . The text states that it was issued under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, codified at 19 U.S.C. 1862 .

The proclamation refers to Proclamation 9704 of 8 March 2018 on aluminium, 9705 of 8 March 2018 on steel and 10962 of 30 July 2025 on copper, each as amended . It also refers to Proclamation 11021 of 2 April 2026, entitled "Strengthening Actions Taken To Adjust Imports of Aluminum, Steel, and Copper Into the United States" . The latter appears in the Federal Register under the same title .

The 15% rate applies to agricultural and industrial equipment

The presidential proclamation states that the Section 232 tariff regimes include a 50% ad valorem duty on products manufactured with the aluminium, steel and copper covered by the earlier proclamations . The same text also mentions a 25% ad valorem duty on derivative products that tend to be composed principally of those metals . It also provides for a temporarily reduced 15% ad valorem duty for a subset of derivative products, including fixed industrial machinery and electrical equipment .

Construction Dive reports that the 15% rate covers agricultural equipment such as combine harvesters and harvesters, as well as certain residential HVAC systems and components . The outlet also cites mobile equipment, including bulldozers and fork-lift trucks, when imported from trading partners benefiting from the treatment mentioned . Reuters, as relayed by Mining.com, reports that certain agricultural equipment moves from 25% to 15% .

The White House page devoted to the proclamation on the tariff regimes applicable to imports of aluminium, steel and copper is dated June 2026 on whitehouse.gov . Construction Dive published its article on 3 June 2026 . Construction Dive states that the 15% rate applies from 8 June 2026 to agricultural equipment, including combine harvesters and harvesters . The same article states that the tariff treatment changes remain in force until "Dec. 31, 2027" . Reuters, as relayed by Mining.com on 1 June 2026, mentions a duration until "December 31, 2027" .

The preferential threshold falls from 95% to 85% in 2028

The US presidential proclamation concerns the Section 232 tariff regimes applicable to imports of aluminium, steel and copper, as well as certain derivative products . From 1 January 2028, imports are eligible for a 10% duty if 85% of the content comes from steel, aluminium or copper produced in the United States . The original source and Construction Dive mention an earlier 95% threshold for products qualifying as wholly manufactured with US metals .

Reuters, as relayed by Mining.com, frames the condition as a threshold of at least 85% US steel or aluminium by weight for the equipment concerned . Construction Dive quotes the presidential wording: "In my judgment, this modification will incentivize increased use of American aluminum, steel, and copper in downstream derivative products" .

The DGDDI summarises the applicable US duties

The DGDDI summarises the US and EU tariff measures currently in force . It states that products originating in the European Union and imported into the United States are subject to the most-favoured-nation customs duty on the total value of the product . The page mentions a global 10% rate under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, except for exemptions listed in an annex . The DGDDI states that Section 232 duties do not cumulate with duties under Sections 122 and 301 . It gives the example of HTSUS code 73.24.10.00 for stainless steel sinks and washbasins .

Documentary status of the sources

FederalRegister.gov states that the documents displayed on its site are XML versions of documents published in the Federal Register and that this version is not the official legal edition of the Federal Register . The same notice states that each document includes a link to the corresponding official PDF file available on govinfo.gov . The Federal Register also publishes a notice from the Bureau of Industry and Security entitled "Adoption and Procedures of the Section 232 Steel and Aluminum Tariff Inclusions Process", concerning the procedures for Section 232 steel and aluminium tariff inclusions .