Citi: Silver and palladium expected to face high tariffs

On August 28th, silver was added to the list of 54 key minerals that the United States relies on imports, pending the outcome of a review under the provisions of Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which allows tariffs to be imposed on goods identified as necessary for national security. Citi expects that some metals could face targeted tariffs of up to 50% immediately or in phases by the time the October report is released. "We expect that the potential for rapid development and expansion of domestic production capacity (and any industry lobbying in support of tariffs) could influence the administration's differentiated policies for different metals and minerals," analysts said. In addition, the US Department of Commerce also launched an anti-dumping investigation into unwrought palladium from Russia earlier this month. Citi's baseline expectation is that palladium will eventually be subject to tariffs through the investigation or Section 232 report. Analysts said the gap between US palladium and silver prices and international benchmarks was too small given the tariff risk.