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Tariffs Take Effect
The United States imposed 50% tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian imports starting Saturday after U.S. and Canadian negotiators failed to reach a deal, with the rates applying from midnight Friday into Saturday.
“went into effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Saturday”
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada would retaliate “dollar for dollar,” and the new Canadian measures were set to begin September 8 after last-ditch negotiations collapsed.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the U.S. offer to Canada to receive “the best treatment of any exporter” was undermined by “new demands and walk-backs of other commitments by Canada,” as the negotiation deadline expired.
ABC News reported the tariffs took effect at 12:01 a.m. ET on Saturday, targeting dozens of products from hockey sticks to wine, while senior Trump administration officials said both sides blamed the other for the talks falling through.
Blame and Political Pressure
On X, Donald Trump wrote, "That’s enough. Canada wants the benefits of being a state without actually being one," as he kept a low profile on reactions to the 50% tariffs that began applying to Canadian products on Saturday.
Carney said the U.S. proposals included “last-minute changes” that were “unfair, anti-economic, and called into question the reliability of the agreement,” and he announced Canada would match the U.S. tariffs “dollar for dollar.”
Al Jazeera reported that top negotiators met for the third day running in Washington, DC, as they tried to finalise a trade deal before new American tariffs started on Saturday.
In the same reporting, Vina Nadjibulla said, “All indications point to the fact that a deal is imminent before the expiry of the current extension,” while warning that even a deal might not mean the U.S. would remove all tariffs on Canada.
Retaliation and What’s at Risk
Canada said its retaliatory tariffs would target U.S. steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics, with Carney telling reporters the measures would come into force the Tuesday after Labor Day.
“Carney said that "in the coming days, we will release the details of these new tariff measures"”
The dispute also threatens the future of a North American trade agreement covering the United States, Canada and Mexico, which Al Jazeera said could be affected because “the majority of Canadian exports were exempted from US tariffs” under the existing free trade framework.
Al Jazeera quoted David Mercer in Calgary saying, “Costs are going to go up, prices are going to go up, unemployment is going to go up as well,” and warned that business owners—“small [and] medium-sized businesses”—might have to declare bankruptcy.
In Ottawa, Carney said Canada would “match Washington’s new tariffs dollar for dollar” to protect Canadian workers, farmers, families, and businesses, while the U.S. trade representative Jamieson Greer blamed Canada for a “missed opportunity for Canada to partner with the United States.”