Inicio - Noticias - The sharp increase in aluminum prices in the United States has created winners: Rio Tinto's exports to the US have returned to a high level, and Canada has become the biggest beneficiary.
The sharp increase in aluminum prices in the United States has created winners: Rio Tinto's exports to the US have returned to a high level, and Canada has become the biggest beneficiary.
June 2, 2026
Against the backdrop of the Trump administration's increase in aluminum import tariffs and disruptions in supply from the Middle East, the Canadian aluminum business of global mining giant Rio Tinto is experiencing unexpected benefits. The company stated that its aluminum exports to the United States have returned to the levels before the tariff implementation, and the United States has once again become the main sales market for Canadian aluminum products.
Last year, the Trump administration raised the import tariffs on aluminum to 50%, which forced Rio Tinto to shift more Canadian aluminum to be sold in Europe. However, due to the persistent shortage of aluminum supply in the United States and the fact that the Middle East war led to the shutdown of some aluminum smelting plants in Gulf countries as well as the transportation being blocked through the Strait of Hormuz, the price of aluminum in the US market rose significantly.
As the aluminum premium in the Midwestern United States has increased nearly threefold compared to last year, Rio Tinto has resumed increasing its supply to the US market. Currently, about 80% of the aluminum produced in Canada is sold in the North American market, basically returning to the level before the introduction of tariffs.
The head of Rio Alumina stated that approximately 2.5 million tons of aluminum production capacity in the Middle East has been halted due to the war, further highlighting the importance of low-carbon aluminum supply from North America. The abundant and cheap hydroelectric resources in Quebec, Canada, make it one of the most competitive aluminum production bases in the world, and also makes the US manufacturing industry more dependent on Canadian imports in the face of supply chain disruptions.
However, despite the fact that the aluminum price in the United States has reached a new high, Rio Tinto has no plans to build a new primary aluminum smelter in the US. The reason is that the construction of artificial intelligence and data centers has driven the electricity cost in the US to keep rising, and the electricity price has already been much higher than the economic level required for aluminum smelting. Rio Tinto believes that compared to expanding production capacity in the US, relying on low-cost hydropower in Canada for aluminum production is more competitive.
This development indicates that although Trump's tariff policy has pushed up the domestic aluminum prices in the United States, it has failed to significantly promote the construction of new domestic production capacity. Instead, it has further strengthened Canada's core position in the North American aluminum supply chain. With the global energy transition and the growth in electricity demand, the importance of low-carbon aluminum resources is expected to continue to rise.
