TORONTO (AP) — Canada’s prime minister and Mexico’s president ordered retaliatory tariffs on goods from the U.S, following through with their threats after U.S. Donald Trump sparked a trade war by imposing sweeping tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico and China.
Canada is initially targeting $30 billion Canadian (US$20 billion) in goods imported from the U.S with tariffs of 25% to come into force on Feb. 4 including beverages, cosmetics and paper products. A second list targeting $125 billion Canadian ($85 billion) in goods will be unveiled soon and will be implemented after public consultation. That will include passenger vehicles, trucks, steel and aluminum products, certain fruits and vegetables, beef, pork, dairy products and more.
A senior Canadian government official said on a briefing with reporters the list is intended to mobilize certain Republican voices around the president. It wasn't immediately clear if that will include Elon Musk and Tesla in the second phase.
Mexico has so far only said it will impose retaliatory tariffs, without mentioning any rate nor products.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum spoke by phone Saturday after Trump's administration imposed sweeping tariffs — 25% on goods from Canada and Mexico, with a lower rate of 10% for Canadian oil, and 10% on imports from China — although there is still no indication the two countries are coordinating responses or will act in concert in the coming days.
Trudeau's office said in a statement that Canada and Mexico agreed “to enhance the strong bilateral relations." Canadian officials have had extensive dialogue with their Mexican counterparts but a senior Canadian official said he would not go as far to say their tariff responses are coordinated.
“Now is the time to chose products made right here in Canada,” Trudeau posted on X on Sunday. On Saturday, he even suggested Canadians should not buy U.S. products or vacation in the U.S.
Canada is the largest export market for 36 states and Mexico is the largest trading partner of the U.S.
Canada and Mexico ordered the tariffs despite Trump’s further threat to increase the duties charged if retaliatory levies are placed on American goods.
“We’re certainly not looking to escalate but we will stand up for Canada," Trudeau said late Saturday.
At the local level, some authorities in provinces like Ontario, British Columbia and Nova Scotia will remove American liquor brands from government store shelves. The Liquor Control Board of Ontario sells nearly $1 billion worth of American wine, beer, spirits and seltzers every year, Ontario Premier Doug Ford pointed out Sunday.
“Not anymore,” Ford said in a statement. “Starting Tuesday, we're removing American products from LCBO shelves. As the only wholesaler of alcohol in the province, LCBO will also remove American products from its catalogue so other Ontario-based restaurants and retailers can't order or restock U.S. products.”
Beyond the official response, people are already thinking of ways to face Trump's decision, including by sharing on social media lists with alternatives to American products.
Trudeau, in fact, addressed Americans directly, saying they the tariffs “will have real consequences for you.”
Trump responded Sunday, criticizing Canada’s trade surplus with the United States and contending that without that surplus, “Canada ceases to exist as a viable Country. Harsh but true! Therefore, Canada should become our Cherished 51st State. Much lower taxes, and far better military protection for the people of Canada — AND NO TARIFFS!”
Canadians are feeling an undeniable sense of betrayal from their one-time closest allies and friends. Trudeau reminded Americans that Canadian troops fought alongside them in Afghanistan and helped respond to myriad crises from wildfires in California to Hurricane Katrina.
Canadian hockey fans booed the American national anthem at two National Hockey League games on Saturday night.
In Mexico, the official public approach to Trump’s tariff threat has been different, with public statements limited to saying the government was prepared for whatever was coming and that it would ensure the country was respected.
In 2019, Mexico was ultimately able to avoid Trump’s tariff threat by adding immigration control to the responsibilities of its newly formed National Guard, but this time the accusation of criminal alliances with Sheinbaum’s administration pushed her to punch back. She called on the U.S. to clean up its own problems with drugs and guns and keep its nose out of Mexico. Trump said he was imposing the tariffs to stop the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs across both the southern and northern U.S. borders.
Beyond the tariffs, academics and diplomats in Mexico harshly criticized the “retaliation clause” Trump included that threatened to raise tariff levels even higher if the targets hit back.
Martha Bárcena, former Mexico ambassador to the U.S. during Trump’s first term, said it’s “very delicate because there has never been such a harsh official statement by the United States government against the Mexican government."
Gabriela Siller, director of economic analysis at the Mexican financial group Banco Base, said that the tariffs could trigger an “economic crisis” in Mexico, hitting key industries and causing unemployment and prices to spike.
In the short term, Sheinbaum’s government would likely have to “apply a countercyclical fiscal policy in Mexico so that there would not be a crash” and take on mounting debt, Siller said.
In the long term, the government would need to seek out new trade agreements, but over-dependence on trade ties with the U.S. will make it hard for Mexico to diversify quickly, she said.
After Trump won the election in November, Canadian leaders openly said Mexico was the problem on trade and the border, not Canada. And some have continued to say so.
“I can tell the American people, Canada is not the problem. The problem is the Mexican border and China. That’s where the problem is," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said.
The trade war comes as Canada is entering an election cycle. Trudeau's Liberal Party will announce a new leader on March 9 and a spring election is expected.
“Canada will not bow down to a bully," said Mark Carney, considered the frontrunner to replace Trudeau.
____
Verza contributed from Mexico City. AP writers Megan Janetsky and Fabiola Sánchez also contributed from Mexico City.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Credit: AP