Trump says dairy, lumber tariffs on Canada could come quickly

A freight truck carrying lumber crosses the border from Canada to the U.S. as seen from Champlain, New York, U.S., on March 5, 2025.
| Photograph Credit score: Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned Friday (March 7, 2025) that he may impose reciprocal tariffs on Canadian dairy and lumber inside days — a transfer set to gasoline tensions with Ottawa simply days after an earlier wave of levies.

Since taking workplace in January, Mr. Trump has unleashed a sequence of tariffs and threats concentrating on U.S. allies and adversaries, together with duties of as much as 25% on imports from Canada and Mexico.

On Thursday (March 6, 2025), he supplied the important buying and selling companions short-term reprieve, exempting items coming in from each international locations below a North American commerce pact.

However he has vowed broader “reciprocal tariffs” as quickly as April 2, aimed toward remedying practices that Washington deems unfair.

Additionally Learn | Trump backs off Mexico, Canada tariffs after market blowback

Mr. Trump additionally signalled that reciprocal levies may come as quickly as Friday (March 7, 2025): “Canada has been ripping us off for years on tariffs for lumber and for dairy merchandise.”

“They will be met with the very same tariff until they drop it, and that is what reciprocal means,” the president added.

“We could do it as early as right now, or we’ll wait until Monday or Tuesday,” he mentioned of the 2 sectors which have lengthy been affected by commerce disputes between the neighbours.

Economists warn that blanket levies may weigh on U.S. progress and lift inflation, including that additionally they weigh on enterprise and client sentiment.

However Mr. Trump saved the strain up on Canada on Friday (March 7, 2025): “It isn’t honest. By no means has been honest, and so they’ve handled our farmers badly.”

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Rising tariffs?

In an earlier interview with Fox Enterprise, Mr. Trump mentioned that tariffs affecting Canada and Mexico may rise sooner or later.

Requested if firms would possibly get extra readability on his commerce insurance policies, Mr. Trump mentioned: “I feel so. However, you already know, the tariffs may go up as time goes by.”

White Home senior counsellor Peter Navarro instructed CNBC in a separate interview he rejected the concept that there was uncertainty surrounding Mr. Trump’s commerce insurance policies.

“The uncertainty is created by the truth that folks do not take President Trump at his phrase,” he mentioned.

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Mr. Trump’s transfer to again off some tariffs on Canada and Mexico got here after inventory markets tumbled as his levies of as much as 25% took impact this week.

On Thursday (March 6, 2025), the White Home mentioned changes exempting items below the United States-Mexico-Canada Settlement (USMCA) acknowledge “the distinctive influence that these tariffs may have on American automotive producers.”

A White Home official instructed reporters that about 62% of Canadian imports will nonetheless face the recent levies, although a lot of them are vitality assets slapped with a decrease 10% price.

For Mexico, the proportion of imports affected is round 50%, the official added on situation of anonymity.

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Nevertheless, Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s secretary of economic system, mentioned 90% of its exports to the US fall below the three-nation commerce pact and might be exempted from tariffs till April.

“Beneath the settlement, we estimate that we are going to attain very near 90%…of all forms of merchandise,” he instructed a press convention.