US, Canada Retract Tariff Increase
The White House announced that it would refrain from doubling tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum following Ontario's agreement to temporarily halt new duties on electricity exports to the United States.
TroibNews 
The U.S. and Canada appear to be experiencing a mini-détente in their ongoing trade conflict, following a tense exchange on Tuesday between President Donald Trump and Ontario Premier Doug Ford.
After a conversation with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Ford announced on Tuesday afternoon that he would suspend the 25 percent tariffs on electricity exports from Ontario that were imposed on three U.S. states just a day earlier.
"Secretary Lutnick agreed to officially meet with Premier Ford in Washington on Thursday, March 13 alongside the United States Trade Representative to discuss a renewed USMCA," Ford and Lutnick stated in a joint announcement, referring to the North American trade agreement known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. "In response, Ontario agreed to suspend its 25 per cent surcharge on exports of electricity to Michigan, New York and Minnesota."
In turn, Trump conveyed to reporters at the White House that he would "probably" withdraw his threat to increase tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum from 25 to 50 percent, scheduled to take effect first thing Wednesday.
"As you know, there's a very strong man in Canada who said he was going to charge a surcharge or a tariff on electricity coming into our country. He has called and he said he's not going to do it. Okay, not going to do that. And it would have been a very bad thing if he did, and he's not going to do that, so I respect that," the president said.
Later, White House spokesman Kush Desai confirmed in a statement that the tariffs would not be doubled. "President Trump has once again used the leverage of the American economy, which is the best and biggest in the world, to deliver a win for the American people. Pursuant to his previous executive orders, a 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum with no exceptions or exemptions will go into effect for Canada and all of our other trading partners at midnight, March 12th.”
The exchanges grew conciliatory after several hours of heated rhetoric between the two countries' leaders, beginning with a post from Trump on his social media platform, Truth Social, criticizing Ontario's electricity tariffs. Ford had imposed those tariffs in retaliation for Trump's initial 25 percent tariffs on all Canadian goods that took effect on March 4. In response to industry pressures, the White House subsequently announced it would roll back much of those tariffs.
“I have instructed my Secretary of Commerce to add an ADDITIONAL 25% Tariff, to 50%, on all STEEL and ALUMINUM COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA, ONE OF THE HIGHEST TARIFFING NATIONS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD,” Trump posted on Tuesday morning. “This will go into effect TOMORROW MORNING, March 12th."
Trump also mentioned in the lengthy Truth Social post that he would declare a national emergency regarding electricity, which would enable the U.S. to "quickly do what has to be done to alleviate this abusive threat from Canada."
He reiterated his demand for Canada to become the 51st state, stating, "The artificial line of separation drawn many years ago will finally disappear, and we will have the safest and most beautiful Nation anywhere in the World — And your brilliant anthem, ‘O Canada,’ will continue to play, but now representing a GREAT and POWERFUL STATE within the greatest Nation that the World has ever seen!”
In response, Ford quickly countered in an interview on MSNBC. “Fighting like this does not make sense, but I will respond appropriately on the electricity. Stay tuned,” he remarked.
Incoming Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also pledged to retaliate against further U.S. tariffs in a post on the social media platform X. "President Trump’s latest tariffs are an attack on Canadian workers, families, and businesses. My government will ensure our response has maximum impact in the US and minimal impact here in Canada, while supporting the workers impacted," wrote Carney, who recently won a Liberal Party leadership race to succeed current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Although Washington and Ottawa appeared to avert a major escalation in their trade disputes, the trade war between the two nations is far from over. As Desai indicated, the White House intends to proceed with the implementation of 25 percent tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum from all countries on Wednesday, reinforcing measures that Trump initiated during his first term, which led to retaliatory actions from Canada, Mexico, the European Union, Turkey, Russia, and India.
The continued 25 percent steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico are poised to pose new challenges for the U.S. auto industry, which had recently been granted a temporary reprieve from the tariffs affecting its two North American neighbors. Automakers like Ford, GM, and Stellantis, as well as their parts suppliers, import significant amounts of metal products from Canada and Mexico, which had previously been largely exempt from Trump's metal duties due to a 2019 agreement that suspended retaliation from these countries.
The European Union had also paused its retaliation against Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs under a deal arranged by the Biden administration in 2021, but this retaliation is set to resume this month as part of a previous arrangement aimed at pressuring the U.S. to eliminate the tariffs completely rather than escalate them as Trump has done.
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt reiterated on Tuesday that Trump’s planned steel and aluminum tariff measures are set to take effect early Wednesday morning.
"Look, the President is unwavering in his commitment to restore American manufacturing and global dominance, and I think he doubled down on that this morning with his new statement [on Canadian tariffs] and the tariffs that will be implemented tomorrow on steel and aluminum," Leavitt said during a White House press briefing.
She broadly defended Trump’s trade actions, claiming they would benefit the long-term health of the U.S. economy despite current stock market fluctuations, while condemning Ford's "egregious and insulting" remarks and echoing Trump's warning of "grave consequences" if the Ontario premier halted electricity deliveries to the United States.
In his Tuesday morning post, Trump also called on Canada to “drop their Anti-American Farmer Tariff of 250% to 390% on various U.S. dairy products, which has long been considered outrageous.”
Canada does not impose a flat tariff on U.S. dairy products but restricts dairy imports through a tariff rate quota, imposing steep tariffs — between 200 and 300 percent — on imports exceeding a certain limit. Almost all other U.S. products are duty-free under the terms of the USMCA.
Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with that quota policy, a long-standing issue between the U.S. and Canada, and hinted that he would sign an executive order addressing Canadian dairy imports.
The president also noted in his Tuesday post that he would “substantially increase” tariffs on Canadian auto imports on April 2 if “other egregious, long time Tariffs are not likewise dropped by Canada.” That date coincides with the White House's plans to roll out reciprocal tariffs targeting all trading partners based on the level of trade barriers those countries impose on U.S. goods.
Emily Johnson contributed to this report for TROIB News
After a conversation with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Ford announced on Tuesday afternoon that he would suspend the 25 percent tariffs on electricity exports from Ontario that were imposed on three U.S. states just a day earlier.
"Secretary Lutnick agreed to officially meet with Premier Ford in Washington on Thursday, March 13 alongside the United States Trade Representative to discuss a renewed USMCA," Ford and Lutnick stated in a joint announcement, referring to the North American trade agreement known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. "In response, Ontario agreed to suspend its 25 per cent surcharge on exports of electricity to Michigan, New York and Minnesota."
In turn, Trump conveyed to reporters at the White House that he would "probably" withdraw his threat to increase tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum from 25 to 50 percent, scheduled to take effect first thing Wednesday.
"As you know, there's a very strong man in Canada who said he was going to charge a surcharge or a tariff on electricity coming into our country. He has called and he said he's not going to do it. Okay, not going to do that. And it would have been a very bad thing if he did, and he's not going to do that, so I respect that," the president said.
Later, White House spokesman Kush Desai confirmed in a statement that the tariffs would not be doubled. "President Trump has once again used the leverage of the American economy, which is the best and biggest in the world, to deliver a win for the American people. Pursuant to his previous executive orders, a 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum with no exceptions or exemptions will go into effect for Canada and all of our other trading partners at midnight, March 12th.”
The exchanges grew conciliatory after several hours of heated rhetoric between the two countries' leaders, beginning with a post from Trump on his social media platform, Truth Social, criticizing Ontario's electricity tariffs. Ford had imposed those tariffs in retaliation for Trump's initial 25 percent tariffs on all Canadian goods that took effect on March 4. In response to industry pressures, the White House subsequently announced it would roll back much of those tariffs.
“I have instructed my Secretary of Commerce to add an ADDITIONAL 25% Tariff, to 50%, on all STEEL and ALUMINUM COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA, ONE OF THE HIGHEST TARIFFING NATIONS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD,” Trump posted on Tuesday morning. “This will go into effect TOMORROW MORNING, March 12th."
Trump also mentioned in the lengthy Truth Social post that he would declare a national emergency regarding electricity, which would enable the U.S. to "quickly do what has to be done to alleviate this abusive threat from Canada."
He reiterated his demand for Canada to become the 51st state, stating, "The artificial line of separation drawn many years ago will finally disappear, and we will have the safest and most beautiful Nation anywhere in the World — And your brilliant anthem, ‘O Canada,’ will continue to play, but now representing a GREAT and POWERFUL STATE within the greatest Nation that the World has ever seen!”
In response, Ford quickly countered in an interview on MSNBC. “Fighting like this does not make sense, but I will respond appropriately on the electricity. Stay tuned,” he remarked.
Incoming Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also pledged to retaliate against further U.S. tariffs in a post on the social media platform X. "President Trump’s latest tariffs are an attack on Canadian workers, families, and businesses. My government will ensure our response has maximum impact in the US and minimal impact here in Canada, while supporting the workers impacted," wrote Carney, who recently won a Liberal Party leadership race to succeed current Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Although Washington and Ottawa appeared to avert a major escalation in their trade disputes, the trade war between the two nations is far from over. As Desai indicated, the White House intends to proceed with the implementation of 25 percent tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum from all countries on Wednesday, reinforcing measures that Trump initiated during his first term, which led to retaliatory actions from Canada, Mexico, the European Union, Turkey, Russia, and India.
The continued 25 percent steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada and Mexico are poised to pose new challenges for the U.S. auto industry, which had recently been granted a temporary reprieve from the tariffs affecting its two North American neighbors. Automakers like Ford, GM, and Stellantis, as well as their parts suppliers, import significant amounts of metal products from Canada and Mexico, which had previously been largely exempt from Trump's metal duties due to a 2019 agreement that suspended retaliation from these countries.
The European Union had also paused its retaliation against Trump's steel and aluminum tariffs under a deal arranged by the Biden administration in 2021, but this retaliation is set to resume this month as part of a previous arrangement aimed at pressuring the U.S. to eliminate the tariffs completely rather than escalate them as Trump has done.
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt reiterated on Tuesday that Trump’s planned steel and aluminum tariff measures are set to take effect early Wednesday morning.
"Look, the President is unwavering in his commitment to restore American manufacturing and global dominance, and I think he doubled down on that this morning with his new statement [on Canadian tariffs] and the tariffs that will be implemented tomorrow on steel and aluminum," Leavitt said during a White House press briefing.
She broadly defended Trump’s trade actions, claiming they would benefit the long-term health of the U.S. economy despite current stock market fluctuations, while condemning Ford's "egregious and insulting" remarks and echoing Trump's warning of "grave consequences" if the Ontario premier halted electricity deliveries to the United States.
In his Tuesday morning post, Trump also called on Canada to “drop their Anti-American Farmer Tariff of 250% to 390% on various U.S. dairy products, which has long been considered outrageous.”
Canada does not impose a flat tariff on U.S. dairy products but restricts dairy imports through a tariff rate quota, imposing steep tariffs — between 200 and 300 percent — on imports exceeding a certain limit. Almost all other U.S. products are duty-free under the terms of the USMCA.
Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with that quota policy, a long-standing issue between the U.S. and Canada, and hinted that he would sign an executive order addressing Canadian dairy imports.
The president also noted in his Tuesday post that he would “substantially increase” tariffs on Canadian auto imports on April 2 if “other egregious, long time Tariffs are not likewise dropped by Canada.” That date coincides with the White House's plans to roll out reciprocal tariffs targeting all trading partners based on the level of trade barriers those countries impose on U.S. goods.
Emily Johnson contributed to this report for TROIB News
