Trump Administration Expands Steel and Aluminum Tariffs to Over 400 Additional Products, Raising Stakes in Trade Agenda

The Trump administration has quietly expanded its 50% steel and aluminum tariffs to include more than 400 additional product categories, vastly increasing the reach and impact of this arm of its trade agenda.

The new tariffs, which took effect Monday, extend the scope of the levies that President Donald Trump previously announced on the valuable commodities. The tariff list now covers products such as fire extinguishers, machinery, construction materials, and specialty chemicals that either contain or are contained in aluminum or steel.

“Auto parts, chemicals, plastics, furniture components—basically, if it’s shiny, metallic, or remotely related to steel or aluminum, it’s probably on the list,” Brian Baldwin, vice president of customs at Kuehne + Nagel International AG, wrote on LinkedIn about the expanded list.

“This isn’t just another tariff—it’s a strategic shift in how steel and aluminum derivatives are regulated,” he added.

The levies extend to 407 new product categories, the Department of Commerce confirmed Tuesday.

“Today’s action expands the reach of the steel and aluminum tariffs and shuts down avenues for circumvention – supporting the continued revitalization of the American steel and aluminum industries,” Jeffrey Kessler, the Commerce Department’s under secretary for industry and security, said in a statement.

The release from the agency links out to a list that identifies the newly included product types only by the specific customs codes that apply to them, not by what the products are actually called. For example, the Commerce Department identifies the product category of fire extinguishers only as “8424.10.0000,” a 10-digit code buried among hundreds of other 10-digit codes. This format makes it very difficult for the public to get a full picture of all the products affected by Monday’s expanded tariffs.

But trade experts warn the impact will be enormous.

“By my count, the steel and aluminum tariffs now affect at least $320 billion of imports based on 2024?s general customs value of imports,” Jason Miller, a professor of supply chain management at Michigan State University, wrote on LinkedIn. That marks a sharp increase from his prior estimate of roughly $190 billion.

“This will add more inflationary cost-push pressures to already climbing prices that domestic producers are charging as picked up by July’s PPI data,? he added.

President Trump has repeatedly leaned on sector-specific tariffs to push his broader trade agenda, which has been characterized by aggressive measures to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign supply chains and to force trading partners into renegotiated agreements.

In June, Trump doubled tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to 50% for most countries, creating widespread uncertainty for businesses and U.S. trading partners reliant on the commodities. Monday’s expansion marks the most sweeping extension of that move to date.

The White House stressed that the latest action should “not come as a surprise.”

“The President called for a new steel and aluminum product inclusions process in February,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement.

“[The Bureau of Industry and Security] established the new product inclusions process in April, and companies submitted requests for product inclusions in mid-May,” he said.

“Thus, it has been clear for many months that new products could be treated as steel and aluminum derivatives.”

The expansion signals that the administration is not only holding firm on its tariff strategy but widening it—closing what officials describe as loopholes and intensifying pressure on industries from manufacturing to construction. However, the ripple effect for businesses is expected to be steep increases in costs, while global trade partners brace for further strain in an already fragile international trading system.