<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has labelled Australia as a "dumper" of under-priced aluminium as domestic politicians scramble to push for an exemption on steel and aluminium tariffs.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"You've got dumpers in the rest of the world. Japan dumps steel, China dumps steel," he told Fox Business. "We're going to stop that nonsense and bring steel here.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"We're not going to stand for China dumping, Japan dumping, Australia does a lot of aluminium at below cost."</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE: </span></strong><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/australian-households-hit-with-higher-electricity-bills-within-months/20c21ed6-7f3a-4d52-8b90-4b11c9eb9532"><strong><span>Electricity bills set for sharp jump in much of Australia</span></strong></a><strong></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Lutnick said Trump was "protecting America".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australia's steel and aluminium exports to the US amount to about 0.2 per cent of the national total export value.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>This morning opposition leader Peter Dutton promised to "get a deal done" with US President Donald Trump if he were elected, after the White House </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/usa-donald-trump-tariffs-on-all-imported-steel-and-aluminium/76fcbd54-fa38-4e87-b8e4-53c295c9ea4e" rel="" target="_blank" title="imposed global tariffs on steel and aluminium imports"><span>imposed global tariffs on steel and aluminium imports</span></a><span> yesterday morning.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/world/steel-aluminium-us-tariffs-on-australia-penny-wong-peter-dutton-trade-blows/4115539d-b985-4e45-ac22-98995e6603c4" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Australia failed to obtain an exemption from the tariffs, which Dutton said was a failure on the part of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I just think he's out of depth, and I completely and utterly disagree with the decision President Trump's made, but it's up to our prime minister to stand up for our country's interests," Dutton told Today.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>READ MORE:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/world/donald-trump-trade-war-eu-retaliates-against-us-trade-moves-and-hits-beef-whiskey-motorcycles-with-targeted-tariffs/4aa62117-1875-41f4-988f-e7024c32de81" target="_blank"><strong><span>Canada and EU retaliate against Trump, hitting beef, whiskey, motorcycles</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>A Coalition government negotiated an exemption on US tariffs during Trump's first term, though it took about a year to do so.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Dutton said if he was elected as Prime Minister, he would "get a deal done" with the White House.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"And we'll make sure that we can protect jobs and protect industry," he said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>He claimed Albanese, who yesterday slammed the tariffs decision as without justification and "not a friendly act", did not have a good relationship with Trump.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Albanese last month spoke with Trump by phone regarding a possible exemption.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Trump, who labelled Albanese "a very fine man" afterwards, said he would give the issue "great consideration", before the White House press secretary revealed yesterday no exemptions would be forthcoming.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>IN PICTURES:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/donald-trump-billionaires-lost-money-supporters-in-pictures/2f25bcae-f0ff-4de9-b45a-4a24c86c5f76" rel="" target="_blank" title=""><strong><span>All the billionaires who have lost money by supporting Donald Trump</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Albanese - who has also been criticised for repeated overseas trips during his tenure as prime minister - was attacked by opponents for not personally travelling to the US in order to press Trump on tariffs.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Dutton said Albanese was the only Quad leader to not have visited the US since Trump's election.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>However, Foreign Minister Penny Wong said that the value of such a personal trip was dubious, pointing out that the tariffs did not exempt other Quad members India and Japan.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>EXPLAINED:</span></strong><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/donald-trump-tariffs-what-they-mean-australia-everything-need-know-explainer/6b4053af-724e-4649-a574-b73498d2fc4a" target="_blank"><strong><span>How hard Trump's tariffs will hit the Australian economy</span></strong></a></div></div><div class="styles__Wrapper-sc-2o34ro-0 cmwkBV"><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><a href="/content/2025/03/12/09/46/today-in-history-march-13-what-happened-on-this-day"><img alt="" sizes="(min-width: 1024px) 636px, (min-width: 768px) 396px, 100vw" src="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/7t5X1BotWrZFOsNuAW9tYV1Yl5I=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F97a262cd-285a-459e-ad2d-d80b95c75ce6" srcset="https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/7t5X1BotWrZFOsNuAW9tYV1Yl5I=/396x223/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F97a262cd-285a-459e-ad2d-d80b95c75ce6 396w, https://imageresizer.static9.net.au/gwXiS_qBEeYD-FtaMQRG8E4m9hU=/636x358/https%3A%2F%2Fprod.static9.net.au%2Ffs%2F97a262cd-285a-459e-ad2d-d80b95c75ce6 636w"/></a></div><div class="styles__Column-sc-2o34ro-3 jJDKrX"><div class="styles__Headline-sc-2o34ro-4 hpbOlz">Coup announced on radio, 20 minutes before the attempt began</div><div class="styles__Button-sc-2o34ro-1 eBjlmW"><a class="styles__ButtonLink-sc-2o34ro-2 hqpklJ" href="/content/2025/03/12/09/46/today-in-history-march-13-what-happened-on-this-day">View Gallery</a></div></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Part of what the Trump administration has said this time is that they made a mistake when they gave exemptions to their tariffs in their first term," Wong said on Today.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"So part of why they have not given exemptions to Australia and to other countries, to any other country, is they think they made a mistake in their first term."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>She backed Albanese's labelling of the tariffs as "unjustified".</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The government has pledged to continue negotiations.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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