Canada and Mexico announce counter tariffs against Trump – Charm

(This story was updated to include new information)

President Donald Trump on Saturday followed through with his threat to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China, pushing the world’s largest economy into a trade war with two neighbors and a superpower.

Mexico and Canada, the top two U.S. trading partners, immediately vowed retaliatory tariffs, while China said it would challenge Trump’s move at the World Trade Organization and take other “countermeasures.”

With a stroke of a presidential pen, Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Mexican and most Canadian imports and 10% on goods from China, starting on Tuesday.

A lower tariff rate of 10% was set for Canadian energy, including natural gas and oil.

Trump, who has called himself “Tariff Man,” said the move was to force the countries to stem the flow of migrants and fentanyl across the borders and into the U.S.

President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico said she preferred dialogue over confrontation in a statement but was forced to respond in kind via a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“I’ve instructed my economy minister to implement the plan B we’ve been working on, which includes tariff and non-tariff measures in defense of Mexico’s interests,” Sheinbaum posted on social media but didn’t identify which products would be targeted.

The Mexican president also rejected the White House’s allegation that drug cartels have an alliance with her government, calling it “slander” after Trump’s administration used it to justify the tariffs.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada would respond with 25% tariffs against $155 billion of U.S. goods, according to Reuters, including alcohol, lumber and appliances, beginning with $30 billion taking effect Tuesday and $125 billion some three weeks later.

Trump’s action will not only harm Canadians but will have “real consequences” for the American people, said Trudeau.

“(It) will put your jobs at risk, potentially shutting down American auto assembly, plants and other manufacturing facilities,” he said. “They will raise costs for you, including food at the grocery store and gas at the pump.”

Meanwhile, Trump also noted in his executive orders that if the targeted countries retaliate against the tariffs imposed, he “may increase or expand in scope the duties imposed under this Executive Order to ensure the efficacy of this action.”

National Foreign Trade Council President Jake Colvin said Trump’s move threatened to raise the costs of “everything from avocados to automobiles” and urged the U.S., Canada and Mexico to find a quick solution to avoid escalation.

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