The US has imposed 50% tariffs on some Canadian goods starting August 22. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Reuters.
The new tariffs apply to approximately $20 billion of Canadian exports to the US. This is just over 5% of all Canadian shipments to the American market. The higher duties affect, in particular, certain consumer and industrial goods.
As recently as August 20, the parties said they were close to an agreement. Discussions included reducing US tariffs on Canadian cars, steel, and aluminum. However, at the last moment, negotiations collapsed.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he had ordered a halt to talks with the US and the return of the Canadian delegation to Ottawa. According to him, Washington changed the terms of the deal at the last minute.
"The changes to the US-proposed terms, made at the last moment, were unfair, unprofitable, and cast doubt on the reliability of any deal," Carney said.
The American side, in turn, accused Canada of refusing to finalize the agreement on previously discussed terms. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer called the incident a missed opportunity for Ottawa.
Following the imposition of the tariffs, Canada announced retaliatory measures. Carney said that starting September 8, Ottawa will impose tariffs on a wide range of American goods and intends to respond to US actions "dollar for dollar." The restrictions will include goods from the metallurgical, agricultural, and industrial sectors.
The new US tariffs escalate the trade confrontation between the two countries and could complicate further negotiations on the agreement between the US, Canada, and Mexico. Meanwhile, a significant portion of Canadian exports still enters the US duty-free under existing trade rules.
Earlier, the US had already imposed separate tariffs on Canadian steel, aluminum, automobiles, and lumber. According to the Canadian government, the US rate on steel and aluminum is 50%, on cars and trucks — 25%, and on lumber — 10%.