SANTIAGO/MEXICO CITY, July 9 (Reuters) - Top officials in Chile and Mexico said on Wednesday they could seek markets elsewhere to avoid tariffs from the Trump administration, a day after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would soon announce a 50% tariff on the red metal.

The president was following through on an earlier statement that he would target a key metal used for semiconductors, lithium-ion batteries and more.

President Donald Trump threatened to double the baseline universal tariff to 20%, citing record stock gains to dispel fears that such a move would hammer the global economy. Even as financial markets barely budged on the news,