IMF warns Trump tarrifs would hit US economy

The International Monetary Fund warned the Trump administration on Friday that US import tariffs on steel and aluminium would cause damage not only to the countries outside the US but to the US economy itself.

"The import restrictions announced by the US President (Donald Trump) are likely to cause damage not only outside the US, but also to the US economy itself, including to its manufacturing and construction sectors, which are major users of aluminium and steel," the IMF said in a terse statement.

"We are concerned that the measures proposed by the US will, de facto, expand the circumstances where countries use the national-security rationale to justify broad-based import restrictions," IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said in the statement.

The IMF did not elaborate on the economic damages.

President Trump said on Thursday he planned to impose tariffs of 25 per cent on steel imports and 10 per cent on aluminium products in order to safeguard American jobs in the face of cheaper foreign products. A formal announcement would take place next week.

A day later, the European Union raised the possibility of taking countermeasures, France said the duties would be unacceptable and China urged Trump to show restraint. Canada, the biggest supplier of steel and aluminium to the United States, said it would retaliate if hit by US tariffs.

(With inputs from Reuters)