Overview

• President Trump’s 50% tariffs on Australian steel and aluminium and a 10% levy on other goods have prompted Canberra to offer regulatory concessions in hopes of securing their removal
• Biosecurity officials are examining whether to allow beef from cattle raised in Mexico and Canada but slaughtered in the US, responding to a direct request from the Trump administration
• Anthony Albanese has made clear that any change to import rules must preserve Australia’s disease-free status and uphold existing biosecurity protocols
• The National Farmers’ Federation and NSW Farmers warn that loosening controls could jeopardise the $20 billion red meat sector and demand stringent traceability requirements for any US beef imports
• Trade Minister Don Farrell has lobbied US counterparts in Paris and points to Australia’s rare trade surplus with the US and the UK’s partial metals carve-out as precedents to bolster calls for full tariff removal