Trump says dairy, lumber tariffs on Canada may come soon
By AFP
March 7, 2025
Beiyi SEOW
US President Donald Trump said Friday that he could impose reciprocal tariffs on Canadian dairy and lumber within days — a move set to fuel tensions with Ottawa just days after an earlier wave of levies.
Since taking office in January, Trump has unleashed a series of tariffs and threats targeting US allies and adversaries, including duties of up to 25 percent on imports from Canada and Mexico.
On Thursday, he provided the vital trading partners temporary reprieve, exempting goods coming in from both countries under a North American trade pact.
But he has vowed broader “reciprocal tariffs” as soon as April 2, aimed at remedying practices that Washington deems unfair.
On Friday, Trump signaled that such levies could come as soon as Friday: “Canada has been ripping us off for years on tariffs for lumber and for dairy products.”
“They’ll be met with the exact same tariff unless they drop it, and that’s what reciprocal means,” the president added.
“We may do it as early as today, or we’ll wait till Monday or Tuesday,” he said of the two sectors which have long been affected by trade disputes between the neighbors.
Economists warn that blanket levies could weigh on US growth and raise inflation, adding that they also weigh on business and consumer sentiment.
But Trump kept the pressure up on Canada on Friday: “It’s not fair. Never has been fair, and they’ve treated our farmers badly.”
– Rising tariffs? –
In an earlier interview with Fox Business, Trump said that tariffs affecting Canada and Mexico could rise in the future.
Asked if companies might get more clarity on his trade policies, Trump said: “I think so. But, you know, the tariffs could go up as time goes by.”
White House senior counselor Peter Navarro told CNBC in a separate interview he rejected the idea that there was uncertainty surrounding Trump’s trade policies.
“The uncertainty is created by the fact that people don’t take President Trump at his word,” he said.
Trump’s move to back off some tariffs on Canada and Mexico came after stock markets tumbled as his levies of up to 25 percent took effect this week.
On Thursday, the White House said adjustments exempting goods under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) recognize “the unique impact that these tariffs could have on American automotive manufacturers.”
A White House official told reporters that about 62 percent of Canadian imports will still face the fresh levies, though much of them are energy resources slapped with a lower 10 percent rate.
For Mexico, the proportion of imports affected is around 50 percent, the official added on condition of anonymity.
By AFP
March 8, 2025
Experts have warned it is often Americans who end up paying the cost of tariffs on imports. - © GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP/File SPENCER PLATT
Beiyi SEOW
US President Donald Trump imposed vast tariffs this week on key partners Canada and Mexico, roiling cross-border ties before offering temporary relief to manufacturers — but with more levies kicking in next week, the respite may be fleeting.
US companies faced a series of duties starting Monday, with Trump doubling an additional levy on Chinese goods before allowing 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports to take effect Tuesday.
The moves rattled markets, sending major Wall Street indexes down, and the president on Thursday announced exemptions for Canadian and Mexican goods entering the United States under a North American trade pact.
But some 62 percent of Canadian imports are still hit by the new levies, even as much of them are energy resources covered by a lower 10 percent tariff.
For Mexican goods, this proportion is around half, the White House estimates.
“It’s surprising because it’s such a self-destructive policy,” said Philip Luck, director of the economics program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Referring to the initial imposition of 25 percent Canada and Mexico tariffs, Luck called it “economic kryptonite.”
Although Trump partially rolled back levies — taking into consideration heavily integrated North American auto supply chains — the fact that tariffs came on has lingering effects, Luck said.
“The damage was done for the week they were on, and the damage continues to be done in terms of the fact that we just have a much more uncertain trade environment,” he told AFP.
– Steel, aluminum hit –
Looking ahead, Trump’s 25 percent tariffs across steel and aluminum imports are due to take effect next Wednesday.
US President Donald Trump’s steep tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports rattled markets – Copyright AFP/File ROBERTO SCHMIDT
Trump has said he would not modify the levies.
These tariffs will also affect Canada and Mexico, both of whom export steel to the United States, alongside other trading partners like Brazil, South Korea and European countries.
But even as Washington seeks to help domestic steel producers, experts warn that targeting the metals harms various other industries.
Steel and aluminum are inputs to construction, data centers and automobiles, said Luck of CSIS.
And it is unclear if such tariffs do more good than harm.
In 2002, the George W. Bush administration placed tariffs on imports of certain steel products to guard the domestic sector.
But Luck noted that more jobs were lost in steel-consuming industries than the total number employed by the American steel industry itself.
Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM), estimates that existing steel and aluminum tariffs currently cover less than half of all such US imports.
But Trump’s moves next week are “essentially a reset” of levies to 25 percent.
– Cost concerns –
To guard against volatility from upcoming tariffs, some manufacturers will look to source more products domestically or renegotiate their import contracts, said Paul of AAM.
Businesses may also delay orders, and others are likely stocking up on inventory, he told AFP.
No matter what, there will be an “adjustment period” for firms, he said.
The speed of policy rollout now, Paul added, means a “rapid reset” of trade ties — a sharp contrast to the slow spread of deindustrialization over decades previously.
This week alone, he said, the additional 20 percent tariff targeting China raises the effective average rate on Chinese products to about 30 percent.
“When you look at what’s actually been put into place so far, from a tariff point of view, the focus has certainly been China,” he said.
“I don’t think they’re done yet,” he added, referring to the world’s second biggest economy.
Industries are on edge as they eye the possibility of more levies to come — with Trump promising “reciprocal tariffs” as soon as April 2.
On Friday, trade association the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) expressed concern that “the continued threat of tariffs will make it harder for builders and their customers to move ahead with new construction projects.”
“With the nation facing a housing affordability crisis, we continue to believe that critical construction materials should be exempt from any future tariffs,” said NAHB chairman Buddy Hughes.
Trump tariffs: What’s been done and what is to come?
By AFP
March 7, 2025
US President Donald Trump has justified the tariffs on vital trade partners as a response to illegal immigration and the deadly drug fentanyl coming into his country - Copyright AFP/File ANGELA WEISS
It was another roller-coaster week in US President Donald Trump’s trade war as tariffs against China came into force while Mexico and Canada were given a temporary reprieve.
Here is what happened this week and what’s looming in the coming weeks:
– North American standoff –
Trump unveiled 25-percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods on February 1, with a lower rate of 10 percent for Canadian oil.
But hours before they were due to take effect on February 4, Trump agreed to delay the move for a month.
Fast-forward to March 4: the tariffs come into force, hitting imports from Mexico such as avocado or tomatoes and Canadian goods such as lumber.
Three days later, Trump gave the two countries another one-month delay, this time on products covered under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) — a pact that the US leader signed into law during his first term in office in 2020.
More than 50 percent of Mexican goods and 38 percent of Canadian goods entered the United States under the USMCA last year, according to a White House official.
Trump had already given automakers a similar reprieve, which will last until April 2, following talks with Ford, General Motors and Jeep owner Stellantis.
In response to the pause, Canada delayed its own second wave of retaliatory tariffs on Can$125 billion ($87 billion) worth of US products until April 2.
Trump has justified the tariffs on the United States’ neighbours and vital trade partners, along with China, as a response to illegal immigration and the deadly drug fentanyl coming into his country.
– China –
Trump has not given China such breaks
Ten percent tariffs on goods from the country considered as the world’s factory came into effect on February 4 — and they were increased to 20 percent on March 4.
Beijing retaliated, saying it would impose 10- and 15-percent levies on a range of agricultural imports from the United States.
Those come into effect next week and will impact tens of billions of dollars in imports, from US soybeans and corn to chicken and beef.
Beijing had earlier responded to US trade measures with duties of 15 percent on coal and liquefied natural gas, and 10 percent on oil and other goods.
China has pushed back on its alleged role in the deadly fentanyl supply chain, saying Beijing has cooperated with Washington and arguing that tariffs would not solve the drug problem.
– Next target: EU –
Trump has said that products from the 27-nation European Union would be hit with a tariff of 25 percent, adding that the bloc has “taken advantage of us.”
The EU has vowed to retaliate with proportionate countermeasures.
– Steel and aluminium –
Trump signed orders in February to impose 25-percent tariffs on US steel and aluminium imports from March 12.
Canada is the leading supplier of steel to the United States, followed by Brazil.
– Chips, pharmaceuticals –
Trump has said tariffs on automobiles, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals could come as early as April 2, with a rate of around 25 percent.
For computer chips and pharmaceuticals, he said they could “go very substantially higher over (the) course of a year.”
– Reciprocal tariffs –
Trump has also signed plans for sweeping “reciprocal tariffs” that could hit both allies and adversaries by April 2.
The levies would be tailored to each US trading partner and consider the tariffs they impose on American goods, alongside taxes the White House has said are discriminatory, such as value-added taxes.
On Monday, Trump also signalled tariffs on imported agricultural products. A White House official told AFP this came under his plans for reciprocal tariffs.
– Probes on lumber and copper tariffs –
Trump ordered a probe on Saturday into potential tariffs on lumber imports.
The review, due by November, takes aim at exporters like Canada, Germany and Brazil, with White House officials earlier accusing them of “dumping” lumber into the US market.
Last month, Trump also ordered an investigation into possible levies on US copper imports, which could fuel trade tensions with Chile, the biggest US supplier, as well as Canada.
– Chips, pharmaceuticals –
Trump has said tariffs on automobiles, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals could come as early as April 2, with a rate of around 25 percent.
For computer chips and pharmaceuticals, he said they could “go very substantially higher over (the) course of a year.”
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