The US' sweeping 50pc tariff on copper imports effective from 1 August is expected to have minimal impact on Japanese metal producers given limited shipments to the US market.
The impact of the blanket 50pc tariff by the US government will be negligible, a domestic electric copper producer told Argus on 10 July, because the company primarily supplies copper products to Asian nations. There are virtually no shipments to the US market, it added.
The company's selling prices are likely to remain stable given that most purchase agreements are locked in through term contracts, the firm said. The company has not yet received unexpected windfall orders following the White House's announcement of the tariff hikes.
Another Japanese metal producer echoed this sentiment, saying that the US' tariff measure is unlikely to hit its operations given limited deliveries to the country. The firm owns stakes in a South American copper mine project but its copper offtake from the mine is not destined for the US market, reinforcing the limited direct impact from the tariffs.
But the company expressed concerns over potential broader implications, citing uncertainty around Washington's definition of "copper products". The impact could be larger if the US government plans to enforce tariffs on a wider range of copper-based products.
The producer's concern also lingers over potential indirect impacts from possible disruptions in the metal supply chain. The company ships processed copper products to Asian nations for further manufacturing in the region, but some of the final products are partly exported to the US market. The company could face challenges if these end-products fall under the new tariff, it added.
Japan produced around 1.6mn t of copper ingot in 2024, up by 4.9pc from a year earlier, according to the industry group Japan Mining Industry Association and the Japan Mining Promotive Foundation. Around half of total domestic output is exported, with the majority going to Asian markets, according to a market participant.
