(AFP) – US President Donald Trump said Monday that he would double tariffs on Canadian vehicles beginning next year, as the neighboring countries spiral towards an escalating trade war. “On January First, 2027, Tariffs on all Cars, Trucks, both large and small, Automotive Parts, and Steel, will be increased to 50%,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. The current US tariff impacting Canadian autos stands at 25 percent for non-US content, while imported steel to the United States generally faces a 50-percent duty. US automakers did not immediately respond to queries on the matter.
Trump’s latest threat comes after the North American neighbors failed Friday to reach a deal to avert new 50-percent US tariffs on select Canadian goods. The duties took effect on Saturday. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has since announced retaliatory tariffs targeting the United States after walking away from what he called a “bad deal.” The new Canadian tariffs will target US steel and dairy industries, while also covering sectors like agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, as well as electronics. Canada’s response is set to take effect on September 8.
The United States is by far Canada’s biggest trading partner, with Canadian exports to its neighbor representing 70 percent of its overall total. Trump’s tariffs are already having a deep impact on key Canadian industries such as the steel and auto industries. Canada is the United States’ second biggest trading partner in goods this year, behind Mexico, according to Census Bureau data.
The Angus Reid Institute noted that three in four Canadians supported the Carney government’s decision to walk away from trade talks. In poll findings released Sunday, the research group added, however, that two in five have some fear about their jobs. The White House had alleged “discriminatory treatment” by Canada against US alcohol, automobile and dairy products in rolling out the 50-percent tariffs. Trump delayed their implementation by three days last week as Washington and Ottawa intensified talks towards a deal.
Top Canadian negotiator Dominic LeBlanc and his team were at US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer’s office in Washington for hours on Thursday and Friday. However, both sides failed to reach an agreement after talks that continued late into Friday night. The latest duties hit about 5.5 percent of Canadian goods entering the United States, or some $20 billion worth of products ranging from hockey sticks to cement. Trump charged Monday that “Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years,” adding that “we don’t need Canada, they need us.”
Greer told the New York Times on Saturday that the Trump administration had offered to eliminate a 10-percent tariff on softwood lumber and reduce the 25-percent autos tariff. Washington was also ready to cut steel tariffs from 50 percent to 25 percent for the majority of Canadian steel, according to Greer. Both sides have yet to schedule further negotiations, with Carney saying late Friday that he had decided to suspend trade talks with the United States.
Besides the tariffs fight, the United States and Canada also have to agree on revisions to the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA), which Trump has declined to renew in its current form. Trump’s threats to make Canada the 51st US state have also antagonized many Canadians.
– Beiyi SEOW
© 2024 AFP
