Australia news LIVE: Trump rules out Australian exemption for steel and aluminium tariffs; Ukraine ready to accept ceasefire deal
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‘We remain in discussion’: PM says US tariff negotiations are ongoing
By Shane Wright
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the government is still in talks with the United States over its plans to slap a 25 per cent tariff on Australian steel and aluminium imports.
World financial markets have been rocked this morning after the White House said it would go ahead with the tariff hit on all imports into the US starting from March 12, without exemption. Canada, America’s biggest supplier of steel and aluminium, is facing tariffs of 50 per cent.
US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.Credit: Bloomberg, Getty Images
About $1 billion worth of Australian exports are likely to be affected by the tariff decision.
A spokesperson for Albanese told this masthead that the government would discuss the issue in more detail later today.
“The government has been working hard at all levels to secure an exemption,” they said.
“We remain in discussion with the United States administration, and will have more to say.”
Coalition calls on PM to ‘pick up the phone’ to Trump
By Josefine Ganko
With less than eight hours until Trump’s steel and aluminium tariffs take effect, the Coalition is calling on the prime minister to get on the phone with the US president in a last-ditch attempt to secure an exemption.
Coalition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
After White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said there would be no exemptions, Housing Minister Clare O’Neil insisted discussions were still under way, but wouldn’t detail what negotiations might take place.
“I will leave it to the PM to speak about the ways in which he is going to engage with this subject over the last 24 hours,” she said on Seven’s Sunrise.
After criticising the government for not doing enough to secure the exemption, Liberal senator Jane Hume said she was “urging the prime minister to pick up the phone”.
“This is the last chance. I am not saying this with my Coalition hat on; I’m not talking about things that have gone wrong, but for the sake of your children, my children, [and] the prosperity of the nation in the future, this is the time to pick up the phone and do something. The prime minister has failed to do that.”
‘Never say die’: Minister says tariff negotiations will continue until the last moment
By Josefine Ganko
After White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told this masthead that Donald Trump had decided against a tariff exemption for Australian steel and aluminium, Housing Minister Clare O’Neil says it’s not a done deal yet.
Speaking to Seven’s Sunrise, O’Neil said Australia was “still in discussion with the US government about this”.
Housing Minister Clare O’NeilCredit: Alex Ellinghausen
“So I’m not going to accept this as the situation yet. We still have a little bit of time and lots of discussions continuing to happen.”
O’Neil insisted that whether the tariffs go ahead or not, “we have a very strong and very resilient economy here in Australia”.
“We have a never-say-die approach to these things. We’re still continuing those negotiations and discussions. That will continue till the very last moment,” she said.
The tariffs are set to begin on Wednesday in the US, from around 3pm Wednesday AEDT.
“Our government has done absolutely everything possible to try to get us in the best situation,” O’Neil continued, describing it as a “new context” given no nation had been given tariff exemptions in Trump’s second administration.
For more on Leavitt’s comments revealing Trump’s decision, head here.
US to lift pause on Ukraine aid as Kyiv agrees to ceasefire proposal
The Trump administration has lifted its suspension of military aid and intelligence sharing for Ukraine, and Kyiv has signalled it is open to a 30-day ceasefire in the war with Russia, pending Moscow’s agreement, American and Ukrainian officials said on Tuesday.
The administration imposed the measures a week ago to push Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to enter talks to end the war with invading Russian forces.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US would present the ceasefire offer to the Kremlin following talks in Saudi Arabia.
“We’re going to tell them this is what’s on the table. Ukraine is ready to stop shooting and start talking. And now it’ll be up to them to say yes or no,” Rubio said.
This morning’s top stories
By Josefine Ganko
Good morning, and welcome to the national news blog from The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. My name is Josefine Ganko, and I’ll lead us through the news of the morning.
It’s Wednesday, March 12.
Here’s what’s making headlines this morning.
- President Donald Trump has ruled out a tariff exemption for Australia on steel and aluminium exports, which will begin on Wednesday (local time) in the US.
- Up to one in five Australians have been unable to afford specialist medical appointments or recommended treatments due to rising out-of-pocket fees, a new survey has found.
- And in news from abroad, the US lifted its suspension of military aid and intelligence sharing for Ukraine, and Kyiv signalled that it was open to a 30-day ceasefire in the war with Russia, pending Moscow’s agreement.
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