Trump Unleashes New Wave of Tariffs on Canada Amid Ongoing Trade War

US President Donald Trump's trade war with Canada has been escalating over the past two years. In January 2025, Trump announced his intention to impose a 25% tariff on Canadian imports, citing national security concerns and undocumented immigration.

The move was met with resistance from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who promised retaliatory levies worth $29.8 billion Canadian dollars ($20.7 billion). However, the tariffs were delayed several times due to ongoing negotiations between the two countries.

In April 2025, Trump announced a 'reciprocal' tariff on nearly all of America's trading partners, but did not unveil additional levies on Canada. The U.S. Court of International Trade later ruled that Trump overstepped his authority in imposing these tariffs.

Despite this setback, the trade war continued to escalate throughout 2025 and into 2026. In July 2025, Trump threatened a heightened 35% tariff rate on Canadian goods, which eventually took effect in August. Canada's Prime Minister Mark Carney promised to match the new import taxes 'dollar for dollar'.

The latest development came when Trump announced plans to impose 50% tariffs on many Canadian goods, including those previously-protected under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The levies were originally set to start on August 19, but were delayed until Saturday, August 22. When last-minute negotiations failed, the new tariffs kicked in just after midnight.