Canada Responds, Puts Tariffs on $107 Billion of US Products

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The Canadian government announced a sweeping package of counter-tariffs against U.S.-made products after President Donald Trump confirmed that his administration will go ahead with levies against Canada and Mexico on March 4.

“Canada will not let this unjustified decision go unanswered,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a statement late March 3. The retaliation plan is the same as the one he announced in February after Trump signed his executive order for broad tariffs.

The first stage is 25% tariffs on about C$30 billion worth of goods from U.S. exporters, which was scheduled to go into effect at 12:01 a.m. New York time unless the U.S. dropped its tariffs, Trudeau said. A second round of tariffs at the same rate will be placed on C$125 billion of products in three weeks — a list that will include big-ticket items like cars, trucks, steel and aluminum.

“Our tariffs will remain in place until the U.S. trade action is withdrawn, and should U.S. tariffs not cease, we are in active and ongoing discussions with provinces and territories to pursue several nontariff measures,” Trudeau said.

The retaliatory measures were expected after Trump said earlier there was no way for Canada and Mexico to avoid the broad tariffs he has been threatening since he was elected in November. It’s a trade war that will disrupt one of the world’s largest bilateral trade relationships, worth more than $900 billion in annual goods and services. Canada is the largest single buyer of US goods, and vice versa.

The Canadian dollar and stocks tumbled, with the benchmark S&P/TSX Composite Index falling 1.5%, the most since Dec. 18. Traders in overnight swaps increased bets the