US to Impose 50% Tariffs on Canada After Trade Talks Collapse

The United States and Canada have failed to reach a trade agreement. As a result, Washington will impose 50% tariffs on some Canadian imports starting Saturday, further straining relations between the longtime allies.

A senior official in US President Donald Trump's administration said the tariffs, imposed under Section 338, will apply to about $20bn worth of Canadian goods and will take effect shortly after midnight.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney had suspended the trade negotiations, saying Canada would respond with retaliatory measures of equal magnitude, and ordered the country's negotiators to return to Ottawa.

The decision came after three days of talks in Washington between Dominic LeBlanc, Canada's minister responsible for trade with the US, and Jamieson Greer, the US trade representative. Carney described the last-minute changes to the US terms as unfair and economically disadvantageous.

The new tariffs will affect a relatively small share of Canadian exports, but they will be added to existing US tariffs on steel, lumber and automobiles. They will apply regardless of whether Canadian goods meet the conditions for preferential treatment under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

(Reuters, lud)