AB InBev cautions against U.S. imposing aluminum duties

LEUVEN, Belgium (Reuters) - Anheuser-Busch InBev (ABI.BR), the world's largest beer maker, cautioned U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday against rushing into imposing tariffs on aluminum imports.

Trump has vowed to take steps to crack down on imports of steel and aluminum and has been considering imposing hefty tariffs or quotas on imports of the metals from China and other countries under a national security law.

The U.S. brewing industry uses aluminum in about half of cans and bottles.

"So if you do something drastic in aluminum it could impact the industry," AB InBev chief executive Carlos Brito told a news conference.

Brito said his company would welcome policies that encouraged people to invest in the United States and boost employment.

"We hope that whatever is done in aluminum is along those lines because if it's not it's going to be something that's going to put jobs at risk and would be against the U.S. consumer," Brito said.

(Reporting by Philip Blenkinsop, editing by David Evans)