Canada Slaps $20B Tariffs on US Goods as Trade Talks Fall Apart
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has announced dollar-for-dollar tariffs against $20 billion of US goods starting September 8, after trade talks collapsed. The move comes in response to the US imposing a 50% tariff on an equal amount of Canadian goods.
Carney criticized Washington's last-minute demands, saying they were 'unfair, uneconomic and called into question the reliability of any deal.' He also warned that the US side's disregard for existing free trade agreements, such as CUSMA, sends a bad signal to international businesses and makes renewing the agreement in the future uncertain.
The breakdown of talks has significant implications for the trilateral trade pact, which is up for renewal. The US has begun formal talks with Mexico but has yet to engage with Canada. Carney expressed confidence in Canada's economic resilience, pointing out that it is creating jobs at four times the rate of the US and attracting record foreign direct investment.
The prime minister stated flatly: 'Because we were attacked.' Carney reiterated his confidence in Canada's ability to withstand trade tensions and emphasized its growing independence from the US economy.