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Anthony Albanese has vowed to raise Australia’s objections to Donald Trump’s new 12.5 per cent tariffs ‘at every level’, declaring the measure as ;unjustified’.

Federal PoliticsCommentsPM vows to fight ‘unjustified’ tariffs ‘at every level’

Anthony Albanese has vowed to raise Australia’s objections to Donald Trump’s new 12.5 per cent tariffs ‘at every level’, declaring the measure as ‘unjustified’.

Chloe Maher

US President Donald Trump.

TradeCommentsPremiumBusinesses slam Trump’s forced labour tariffs as ‘ludicrous’

Business groups have slammed Donald Trump’s decision to hike tariffs on Australian exports to the US as ‘ludicrous’ and a move that penalises local firms for no justifiable reason.

Cheyanne Enciso and Bob Garnant

Australia hit with fresh Donald Trump tariff blow.

World PoliticsVideoCommentsTrump slaps 12.5pc tariff on Australian exports

Australian exporters are facing a fresh trade blow after US President Donald Trump confirmed higher tariffs would take effect from today.

Madeline Cove

US President Donald Trump signed proclamations to launch the tariffs against Canada. (AP PHOTO)

TradePremiumUS imposes new 50 per cent tariffs on Canadian products

The United ‌States ‌is imposing a tariff of ‌50 per cent ‌on ⁠certain Canadian ​products, ​according to the ​White ​House.

Staff Writers

The FMG Nicola was about 5 nautical miles out to sea - but still in the main channel at Port Hedland - on February 7 last year when the ship’s main engine suddenly shut down.

MiningCommentsPremiumFull FMG ship risked grounding in awkward engine bungle

A fully-laden Fortescue iron ore bulk carrier came close to scraping along the main channel of Australia’s busiest bulk export port during an unexpected engine shutdown.

Rebecca Le May

Large machinery piles up and unloads iron ore at the Xinsu Port Terminal in Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, China. Iron ore pricing negotiations with China were always tough, and got even tougher in 2022 with the establishment of a centralised procurement enterprise China Mineral Resources Group.

MiningPremium‘Too fraught’ for govt intervention in China iron ore stoush

A Chinese State-owned iron ore buying desk is picking off Australian producers ‘one by one’ in price talks but Federal Government intervention would be a legal and political minefield, an expert says.

Rebecca Le May

Large machinery piles up and unloads iron ore at the Xinsu Port Terminal in Lianyungang, Jiangsu Province, China.

MiningCommentsPremiumIron ore giants call on Canberra to combat China buyer pain

WA’s iron ore giants have begun lobbying Canberra as they seek intervention to help fend off an increasingly bullish Chinese procurer of the powerhouse commodity that is the backbone of the Australian economy.

Daniel Newell

The Albanese government will find it tough to negotiate its way out of Donald Trump's new tariffs. (Susie Dodds/AAP PHOTOS)

Donald TrumpCommentsPremium'No way' for Australia to talk way out of fresh tariffs

Australia will ramp up protests against the Trump administration's "unjustified" proposed tariffs but diplomats face an up-hill battle to secure a carve-out.

Tess Ikonomou

US President Donald Trump has slapped a new tariff on Australia.

The West Australian exclusive
The West Australian exclusive
TradeCommentsPremium
The West Australian exclusive
‘Surprise windfall’ in Trump’s Aussie tariff punishment

EXCLUSIVE: Trade Minister Don Farrell says Donald Trump’s tariffs have delivered a ‘surprise windfall’ for Australia, but has told his counterpart to back off on further increases.

Latika M Bourke

CDC is building the Maddington Data Centre in WA

TradeCommentsPremiumFirst trade deficit in nine years amid data centre boom

Australia has posted its first trade deficit in almost a decade amid booming spending on data centres, a fuel shock and a stronger flow of foreign investment into the country.

Matt Mckenzie

Iron ore transport at the Port of Rizhao in Rizhao city, east China's Shandong province.

updated
updated
MiningPremium
updated
More China pain in store for WA iron ore: BHP and Fortescue

BHP’s WA iron ore boss Tim Day has foreshadowed another round of bruising negotiations with China’s state run commodities buyer next year in a warning for Australia’s most lucrative export industry.

Adrian Rauso

Santos boss Kevin Gallagher at the AEP conference in Adelaide on Wednesday.

EnergyCommentsPremium‘Sliding doors moment’ as Canada stalks Aussie gas customers

Australia should be ‘unleashing’ its oil and gas sector instead of controlling it as Canada plots to snaffle our markets, Santos boss Kevin Gallagher says.

Rebecca Le May

WA’s CME says Canberra’s fiscal upgrade is thanks to yet another Pilbara payload.

BudgetPremiumBusiness: Chalmers’ Budget a ‘missed opportunity’ for reform

Australia’s peak business lobby says the Federal Budget was a ‘missed opportunity’ to reform Australia’s economic settings to ‘shake off economic decline’.

Adrian Rauso

The Trump administration has lost in court again, with a ruling against ten per cent global tariffs. (AP PHOTO)

tCommentsPremiumUS trade court rules against Trump's latest global tariffs

The US Court of International Trade has ruled in favour of small businesses that challenged President Donald Trump's ‌global tariffs.

Dietrich Knauth

Rio Tinto chair Dominic Barton at the company’s AGM in Perth on Wednesday.

MiningPremiumRio Tinto spies big rewards in global ‘fragmentation’

The Iran war is a doubled-edged sword for Rio Tinto, with supply chain pressures offset by booming demand for minerals and metals thanks to global ‘fragmentation’ at a ‘60-year high’.

Adrian Rauso

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Prime Minister of Japan, Sanae Takaichi, speak after reaffirming commitments to regional security, trade partnerships, and the shared values of the two nations.

Federal PoliticsCommentsJapan’s PM raises red flag on China amid Australian visit

Japan’s visiting PM has raised concerns about China’s military rise during discussions with Anthony Albanese in Canberra, before signing several economic and security agreements

Andrew Greene

Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next US ambassador to Australia — David Brat — is an economics professor opposed to free trade.

World NewsVideoCommentsPremiumEverything we know about Trump’s Aussie ambassador nominee

Donald Trump’s nominee to be the next US ambassador to Australia — David Brat — is an economics professor opposed to free trade.

Stephen Johnson

BHP Brandon Craig

updated
updated
MiningCommentsPremium
updated
BHP confirms end to seven-month China standoff

BHP has finally confirmed an end to a tense trade standoff with China, ending seven months of negotiations as the Middle Kingdom sought to shift the balance of power with WA iron ore producers.

Daniel Newell

China's steel mills have been told they're again free to buy BHP's seaborne cargoes. (AP PHOTO)

BusinessPremiumChina lifts BHP iron ore bans after new executive’s visit

China has freed domestic mills to buy BHP iron ore products, signalling the end of a dispute after a visit to the county by BHP's bosses.

Staff Writers

BHP’s stand-off with CMRG — an opaque company directly under the country’s central government — is already the most significant commercial clash in nearly two decades between the country and one of its top suppliers.

MiningCommentsPremiumBHP leaps as China frees mills to buy some cargoes

China’s state-backed iron ore buyer has told several steel mills in the country they are allowed to purchase some BHP cargoes, an apparent concession in a months-long commercial dispute.

Alfred Cang and Katharine Gemmell

A navy vessel is seen sailing in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway through which much of the world’s oil and gas passes on March 1, 2026.

EnergyVideoCommentsPremiumWhat an Iran blockade will look like and how it will be done

The move comes as Iran has blockaded the Strait of Hormuz for weeks during the US-Israeli war with the country, a bottleneck that roiled global markets and strained the economy.

Garrett Downs

In normal times about 135 ships cross daily, and more than 800 freighters are stuck inside the gulf, mostly waiting to leave.

EnergyVideoCommentsPremium479 tankers still stuck after Iran closes Strait of Hormuz

The Strait of Hormuz remains largely blocked as shipowners try to understand if they can safely transit the vital waterway following a fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran.

Weilun Soon, Alex Longley and Julian Lee

With a vast steel industry that consumes more than 70 per cent of seaborne iron ore, China has consistently pushed for greater influence.

analysis
analysis
MiningCommentsPremium
analysis
China takes on titans to reorder a $275b iron ore market

China has sought for decades to turn its clout as the world’s largest commodities consumer into pricing power.  With iron ore, it is closer than ever to success.

Alfred Cang and Katharine Gemmell

It is not immediately clear how the new sales price and resulting US tariffs will be determined. (Julian Smith/AAP PHOTOS)

TradeCommentsPremiumTrump adjusts tariffs on steel, aluminium imports

The US will maintain a 50 per cent import tariff ‌on steel, aluminium and copper commodity imports but apply the rate to the prices paid by American customers.

David Lawder