https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/us-hikes-tariffs-to-...

https://source.benchmarkminerals.com/article/us-hikes-tariffs-to-further-isolate-china-from-its-ev-supply-chain-ambitions

Why has natural graphite been added to the list of tariffs?

Beginning in 2026 the US will apply a tariff of 25% on Chinese natural flake graphite imports, a move aimed at reining in China’s near-monopoly in the graphite used for making batteries for electric vehicles and shows that it intends to diversify anode supplies away from China.

US graphite policy has been under pressure from domestic producers who want protection from lower cost Chinese supply, and downstream manufacturers who rely on access to Chinese graphite production.

However, Benchmark analysis shows that the current ex-China flake graphite supply is insufficient to meet the global demand for graphite.

• China mined 76% of the global natural graphite in 2023, according to the Natural Graphite Forecast.
• China also has a monopoly on converting flake graphite flake graphite into the spherical graphite for battery anodes and is forecast to produce 98% of uncoated spherical graphite (USPG) in 2024 according to Benchmark’s Natural Graphite Forecast.
• The US imported 39,000 tonnes of flake graphite in 2023, according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. However, the majority of imported graphite is used for industrial applications not anode production.
• China currently accounts for close to 40% of flake graphite imports into the country. The levy of tariffs from 2026 may reduce US dependence on China but increase imports from other destinations such as Africa and Brazil.

The tariffs are likely to accelerate the ex-China natural graphite build out that has emerged in recent years.