Washington DC - President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he plans to set a 50% tariff on copper imports, while threatening a much higher rate on pharmaceuticals that would kick in after at least a year.

"Today we're doing copper," he told a cabinet meeting, indicating progress in an ongoing probe into imports of the metal.

The president also said that Washington would soon make an announcement on pharmaceuticals, broadening the slate of sector-specific levies his administration has imposed since January.

But he said he would allow pharmaceutical manufacturers time to relocate their operations into the US before rolling out fresh duties.

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"We're going to give people about a year, a year and a half to come in, and after that, they're going to be tariffed," Trump said.

"They're going to be tariffed at a very, very high rate, like 200%," he added. "We'll give them a certain period of time to get their act together."

Apart from imposing a blanket 10% tariff on almost all US trading partners and threatening higher rates customized to dozens of economies, Trump has also imposed duties on steel, aluminum, and autos this year.

Besides copper and pharmaceuticals, he has ordered probes into imports of lumber, semiconductors, and critical minerals, too, that could eventually bring about further levies.