Trump Escalates U.S.-Canada Trade War

President Donald Trump escalated the U.S.-Canada trade war by ordering bans on selected Canadian alcohol, dairy and whey products, motorcycles and mopeds beginning Sept. 29, while imposing or extending 50% tariffs on goods including cheese, steel, aluminum, furniture, mattresses, lamps, motorboats and golf carts from Sept. 15. The measures followed Canada’s implementation of retaliatory tariffs ranging from 15% to 50% on roughly C$27.6 billion of U.S. imports after trade talks broke down and Washington imposed duties of up to 50% on Canadian products. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer defended the actions as a response to alleged Canadian discrimination against American exporters, while Canadian officials called them unjustified and said they were assessing the new orders. Trump also directed the General Services Administration to exclude Canadian-origin products from government procurement schedules worth more than $50 billion annually unless Ottawa provides what he calls full and fair reciprocity, and he threatened further action involving Bombardier. Canada has provided C$7.5 billion in support and removed some seafood products from its tariff list over economic concerns, while businesses on both sides face higher costs and supply-chain disruptions; companies including Sapporo are considering shifting production to the United States as Prime Minister Mark Carney pursues costly efforts to diversify Canada’s trade.