The United States is set to impose 50 per cent tariffs on $20 billion worth of Canadian imports after the two long-standing allies failed to reach a deal at the last minute.
The new tariffs will come into effect at 12:01 am on Saturday (local time) on hundreds of items that Washington imports from Ottawa, including plywood, liquor, electrical equipment and hockey gear, Bloomberg reported.
The two sides were locked in negotiations for weeks and had worked on a draft deal that included reducing tariffs on certain Canadian steel and aluminium to 25 per cent and cutting duties on Canadian autos to 15 per cent.
In exchange, Ottawa was to remove retaliatory measures that it implemented last year after the US President launched the trade war. According to reports, the White House had been seeking a series of concessions, including eliminating Canada’s counter-tariffs on American vehicles and lifting the ban on the retail sale of US alcoholic beverages in most provinces.
However, the two sides couldn’t get the deal to the finish line, with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer stating that the Canadian side declined to finalise a deal. A US official noted that no new talks were scheduled.
The failure to reach a deal has once again heightened tensions between the two longtime allies, which recorded nearly $900 billion in trade in goods and services last year. Beyond the tariff dispute, President Donald Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of making Canada a US state, called its prime ministers “governors,” and said the country could not survive without the United States.
This is a developing story. More details awaited.
