President Donald Trump has made it clear that he is concerned about the United States’ dependence on foreign countries for much of its copper and is looking to boost domestic mining of the metal, but his efforts are likely to feed inflation and take years to reap rewards.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday ordered a probe into possible tariffs on copper imports to rebuild U.S. production of a metal critical to electric vehicles, military hardware, semiconductors and a wide range of consumer goods.

Tariffs, if they are imposed, could boost U.S. production of a valuable resource but also raise costs for automakers, construction companies and others.

The White House proclamation directing Commerce to initiate a Section 232 investigation on copper imports is now live. As always, the stakes are

President Trump issued an executive order (EO) requiring the US Department of Commerce (Commerce) to investigate the national

China urged the United States on Thursday to halt an investigation into potential new tariffs on copper imports to rebuild U.S. production of the critical metal, vowing to retaliate if Chinese entities got caught up in the levies.

The officials, briefing reporters on condition of anonymity, said it was premature to discuss a potential rate for the tariffs. Copper futures in New York surged nearly 5% for their biggest intraday gain since May last year.