Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on $20 billion in U.S. goods take effect

Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on $20 billion in U.S. goods took effect shortly after midnight Eastern time on Tuesday, extending an increasingly bitter trade dispute between the two countries.

The Canadian government announced the measures two weeks earlier, after negotiations broke down and the Trump administration followed through on a threat to impose 50% duties on $20 billion of Canadian goods. Canadian officials had promised to respond “dollar for dollar.”

Canada’s tariffs range from 15% to 50%. American milk, perfume, video game consoles, golf clubs, fishing rods, steel, aluminum, jackets and T-shirts face the 50% rate. Cheese, carpets, stoves and air conditioners face 25% tariffs, while forklifts and industrial molds face 15%. Canada removed planned 25% tariffs on some seafood after pressure from the lobster industry.

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dollar for dollar

Economists say the measures could hit manufacturers in Midwestern states such as Michigan and Indiana, as well as dairy producers in Wisconsin and Vermont. The tariffs respond to U.S. duties on Canadian milk, honey, hockey sticks, alcoholic beverages, plywood, down feathers, jewelry and other products.

The levies cover only a small fraction of the goods crossing the border, which totaled more than $700 billion last year, according to U.S. government figures. But they deepen a dispute that has also involved boycotts of American liquor in some Canadian provinces, disagreements over NATO and President Trump’s comments about making Canada the 51st U.S. state. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said the U.S. administration “asked too much and offered too little” before talks collapsed.

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asked too much and offered too little