Canada announces retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods

Canada has announced retaliatory tariffs on goods from the United States amid an escalating trade war between the two countries after failed negotiations.

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government said that tariffs ranging from 15 per cent to 50 per cent would be imposed on 700 U.S. products from September 8 in response to the Trump administration’s measures against Canadian goods.

The government also said it would implement measures to support citizens affected by the U.S. measures. The U.S. remains Canada’s largest trading partner, while Ottawa is Washington’s second-largest trading partner after Mexico.

Canada’s finance ministry said in a statement that the government had negotiated “intensively and in good faith” with the U.S. to ensure a “fair and comprehensive trade agreement”.

“In recent days, however, the U.S. proposed new terms that were not in Canada’s best interest, basically asking too much of Canada and offering too little in return,” the ministry wrote.

“Canada did not choose this trade conflict, but we need to respond to provide a level playing field to our businesses,” it said.

Canada’s finance minister Francois-Philippe Champagne described the measures as “dollar-for-dollar, rate-for-rate counter-tariffs” and a “multibillion-dollar support package [that] will protect workers, farmers, families, and businesses”.

“Canada’s counter-tariffs will apply to products covering $27.6 billion in imports from the U.S. and will focus on sectors such as steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics that are most impacted by U.S. tariffs,” the ministry said.

The Trump administration announced the tariffs in July over what it called Canada’s “discriminatory treatment of American products”. It implemented the tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian products on Saturday after trade negotiators from both countries failed to finalise their trade deal before a deadline set by the U.S. president.

Additionally, Mr Trump announced on Monday that he would raise automobile tariffs by 50 per cent from January 2027.
Since returning to the White House last year, Mr Trump has slapped Canada with tariffs on key imports, and the neighbouring country has retaliated. The two countries have since engaged in a cyclical trade dispute, with Mr Trump repeatedly threatening new tariffs.