US President Donald Trump's proposed tariffs on steel and aluminium imports are a "black day" for the world and could hurt the Australian economy, BHP Billiton CEO Andrew Mackenzie says.
The mining chief's comments came as reports suggested Mr Trump will meet with American steel and aluminium users at the White House later this week to hear their concerns about proposed tariffs of 25 per cent on imported steel and 10 per cent on aluminium.
The meeting organised by White House economics adviser Gary Cohn is part of a Republican rear-guard action against the president's plan.
Mr Mackenzie said it is too early to tell how the tariffs will affect BHP, but he said he is concerned the restrictions could damage the current optimism toward free trade.
"Outside of the US the sense that I have at the moment is that people are re-embracing free trade after a bit of a wobble - partly driven by the result of several elections," he told a business conference in Sydney.
"I don't see that changing anytime soon but I am worried about this sort of sentiment shift, that people all around the world might suddenly say free trade is not good for the world, and that would be particularly bad for a trading company like BHP and a trading nation like Australia."
Mr Mackenzie described the tariff decision as a "black day for the world and business", but was otherwise optimistic about global business conditions.
The Australian government is hoping Mr Trump will fulfil a promise made on the sidelines of last year's G20 summit to exempt Australian steel and aluminium.
Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister David Littleproud said Australian farmers had enough access to global markets to survive any escalation in tariffs from the United States.
"We've been able to spread the risk globally around the world for our producers in the agricultural sector, but also in terms of other industries," he told reporters in Canberra on Tuesday.
"One part of the world may want to move into protectionism, we don't."
Trade Minister Steven Ciobo will sign the 11-nation Trans Pacific Partnership, which does not include the US, in Chile later this week.
US Republican leaders are concerned about a possible global trade war and argue it could hit American jobs and undermine the benefits of recent corporate tax cuts.
Pro-business groups have also launched a campaign portraying the tariffs as a "tax on the middle class with everything from cars to baseball bats to even beer."
Share
