MillerCoors slams Trump aluminum tariffs: American workers, consumers will suffer

Beer brewing company MillerCoors came out against President Trump’s decision to raise tariffs on aluminum, warning that “American workers and American consumers will suffer” over the move.

“Like most brewers, we are selling an increasing amount of our beers in aluminum cans, and this action will cause aluminum prices to rise. It is likely to lead to job losses across the beer industry,” the company said in a statement on Twitter on Thursday.

The brewer said it purchases as much aluminum domestically as it can, but that “there simply isn’t enough supply to satisfy the demands of American beverage makers like us.”

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“American workers and American consumers will suffer as a result of this misguided tariff,” the company said. 

MillerCoors statement: We are disappointed with President Trump’s announcement of a 10% tariff on aluminum. While we won’t know the details for a week, the Department of Defense recently reported that aluminum does not cause any national security issues. (1/3)

— MillerCoors (@MillerCoors) March 1, 2018

We buy as much domestic can sheet aluminum as is available, however, there simply isn’t enough supply to satisfy the demands of American beverage makers like us. American workers and American consumers will suffer as a result of
this misguided tariff. (3/3)

— MillerCoors (@MillerCoors) March 1, 2018

It’s unclear if beer companies will decide to raise beer prices over the tariffs. A MillerCoors spokesman declined to comment to The Hill beyond the publicly available statement. Pabst Brewing Company and Anheuser-Busch did not immediately return a request for comment by The Hill.

Trump had announced earlier Thursday that he would be imposing a 10 percent tariff on imported aluminum, as well as a 25 percent tariff on imported steel.

“We’ll be signing it next week. And you’ll have protection for a long time in a while,” Trump said.

“You’ll have to regrow your industries, that’s all I’m asking,” he added. 

One beer industry group, the Beer Institute, slammed Trump’s announcement, saying it “will increase the cost of aluminum in the United States and endanger American jobs in the beer industry and throughout the supply chain.”

The group cited an analysis by economic consulting firm John Dunham & Associates, which said the tariff could cause the industry to lose more than 20,000 jobs, according to CNN.

However, CNN also reported that manufacturing advocates argued that price increases would be minimal because the decision would lead to more aluminum production in the U.S.

The groups also called the beer companies hypocritical over their complaints, saying they didn’t lower their prices in stores when aluminum prices dropped by more than a quarter a few years ago.

Trump’s decision to impose the tariffs was quickly met with backlash from some industry executives and GOP lawmakers, including Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).

“The Speaker is hoping the president will consider the unintended consequences of this idea and look at other approaches before moving forward,” Ryan spokesman Doug Andres said Thursday. 

The Dow Jones industrial average plummeted by more than 500 points after the announcement, rebounding a little to close 420 points down.