Canada hits back at Trump with $20 billion tariffs on US goods
Canada has announced retaliatory tariffs on around 700 US goods worth $20 billion as the trade war between the two neighbouring countries intensifies.
The tariffs, ranging from 15% to 50%, will take effect on September 8, Canadian officials said on Tuesday.
The move comes days after tariffs imposed by the Donald Trump administration on Canadian goods came into force.
Ottawa said its measures will match the US tariff levels and affect a range of industries, including steel, dairy and electronics.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada would match the new U.S. tariffs “dollar for dollar” and announced the additional support package in a post on X.
“Canada will match the new U.S. tariffs dollar for dollar,” Carney wrote. “In addition, we are introducing $7.5 billion in new and enhanced measures to support Canadian workers and businesses.”
"This is an unprecedented challenge imposed on Canada. But Canada will meet the moment," Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne told the media.
He added that Canadians could see that the country was "united" in its response to Washington.
Canada had chosen to “stand up for Canadians” after the U.S. sought too much while offering too little in return, Champagne further said in a statement.
Ottawa hits back after US tariff escalation
The latest Canadian measures follow the Trump administration's decision to impose tariffs of up to 50% on Canadian imports over the weekend after trade negotiations between the two countries broke down.
Carney had earlier accused Washington of seeking an "uneconomic" and "unfair" trade agreement that would undermine Canada's economic interests.
Carney said Canada could not accept the terms proposed by the US and accused Trump of starting a trade war.
"You're at war when you get attacked. We got attacked," Carney said.
He also claimed that US negotiators wanted to damage major Canadian industries, including automobiles, steel and aluminium.
"We cannot accept what they've offered, and we will not give what they've asked," Carney said.
Trump warns Canada to 'fall in line'
The escalating dispute has been accompanied by increasingly sharp rhetoric from Trump.
On Monday, the US President warned Canadian leaders to "fall in line" or face consequences that he said would be "far worse" than the tariffs already imposed.
Trump later announced that additional tariffs could target Canada's auto industry beginning next year.
Trump accuses Canada of 'ripping off' US
Trump has also defended his tariff strategy by accusing Canada of unfairly benefiting at the expense of American businesses.
"Canada has been ripping off the United States of America for years," Trump wrote on social media, while criticising what he described as Canada's "ridiculously high tariffs" on American farmers.
With Ottawa now matching Washington's tariff measures, the latest escalation threatens to deepen the economic confrontation between two of America's largest trading partners.
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