Norsk Hydro sees limited impact from U.S. aluminium tariffs

OSLO, March 23 (Reuters) – Norwegian aluminum-maker Norsk Hydro said on Friday new U.S. tariff barriers on aluminium would have little direct impact on the firm. U.S. President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Thursday that will impose tariffs on products such as steel and aluminium. The EU and some other allies were exempted from the tariffs, but non-EU member Norway was not on the list. “From a Norwegian perspective, this will have a very limited effect on us,” said Hydro spokesman Halvor Molland, adding Hydro had “some exports” to the United States, but mainly from Germany, which is exempt, and from the Middle East, which is not. Molland said unilateral tariff barriers outside the World Trade Organization system would be bad for the entire aluminum industry. “You risk creating flows of trading that do not follow regular market mechanisms,” he said. Norsk Hydro shares were down 0.65 percent, against an Oslo benchmark index down 0.97 percent.