Rio Tinto reveals US tariffs added $US300 million in costs for Canadian aluminium
Global miner Rio Tinto has revealed it incurred about $US300 million ($460m) in gross costs over the first half of 2025 as a result of US tariffs on its aluminium exports from Canada.
It is understood Rio is among the first companies to reveal the hit from Donald Trump’s trade war this year, which saw the US President slap a blanket 25 per cent import fees on steel and aluminium in March before hiking the penalties to 50 per cent in June.
Last week it was revealed copper could also be subjected to a 50 per cent tariff a move that would impact Rio and rival BHP as two of the biggest copper producers in the world.
Sign up to The Nightly's newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.Revealing a 13 per cent jump in iron ore exports in its second quarter production results on Wednesday, Rio also said it had incurred “around $US300m of gross costs associated with US tariffs on our primary aluminium exports from Canada”.
The miner said a “substantial part” had been compensated from higher premiums on US sales “which rapidly adapted” to the 25 per cent tariff. However, it noted the premium was not fully compensating for the 50 per cent tariff imposed at the end of the second quarter.
Rio is Canada’s biggest aluminium producer and also sells a significant amount of its production into the US market, particularly from its Canadian operations in Quebec and British Columbia.
The miner shipped 723,000 tonnes of aluminium to the US in the first half.
