Trump raises tariffs on steel and aluminum from Canada to 50%

Trump stated that he had instructed his Secretary of Commerce to add an additional 25% to the tariffs on all steel and aluminum coming from Canada, raising the overall rate to 50%. According to him, this is in response to the 25% tax on electricity for the US imposed by the Canadian province of Ontario.

The President added that this decision will come into effect tomorrow morning, March 12.

Trump said he would soon declare a "National Emergency on Electricity within the threatened area." According to him, this will allow the US to take swift action to eliminate economic pressure from Canada.

Furthermore, Trump announced that starting April 2, he will significantly raise tariffs on automobiles imported to the US unless other long-term tariffs from Canada are canceled.

He said that those tariffs “will, essentially, permanently shut down the automobile manufacturing business in Canada. Those cars can easily be made in the USA!”

US-Canada trade war

The new 25% tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on goods from Mexico and Canada came into effect on March 4.

On the same day, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated that with these new tariffs, the United States had started a trade war against his country. In response, Canada imposed 25% tariffs on US goods worth $155 billion.

Additionally, the government of Ontario, a Canadian province, proposed a 25% surcharge on electricity it supplies to the United States.

Trump reacted to Canada's decision to impose tariffs on US products by threatening to double the 25% tariffs that the US had applied to Canadian goods.

Later, Trump delayed the introduction of additional tariffs on car imports from Canada and Mexico as part of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Meanwhile, Canada postponed its plan to introduce 25% tariffs on US products worth 125 billion Canadian dollars ($87.4 billion USD)