President Donald Trump plans to raise tariffs on imports from Canada by 10%, per a TruthSocial post on Saturday.
The president did not share a timeline for when the new tariffs would be imposed or additional details on what goods may be affected. Imports from Canada have been subject to a 35% levy since Aug. 1, unless they qualify for different treatment under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Many goods from Canada are also subject to sector-specific tariff rules, such as those imposed on autos, lumber and steel.
The tariff escalation came after the Government of Ontario last week began airing an anti-tariff television ad in the U.S. last week. The ad features segments of a 1987 speech by then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan, which includes some quotes detailing the negative impacts of duties and acknowledging the value of free trade. Reagan’s radio speech was delivered to explain the temporary tariffs he had placed on Japan at the time.
On Thursday night, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute issued a statement on X protesting the unauthorized use of the speech by the Government of Ontario.
Hours later, Trump reshared the statement in a TruthSocial post, alleging the ad was aired to interfere with an upcoming Supreme Court tariff decision, before adding: “ALL TRADE NEGOTIATIONS WITH CANADA ARE HEREBY TERMINATED.”
Asked to respond to the trade talk cancellation, Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney told a press pool on Friday that “a lot of progress has been made” on trade talks. “And we stand ready to pick up on that progress and build on that progress when the Americans are ready to have those discussions,” he added, according to YouTube videos of the comments uploaded by CNN and the Associated Press.
Also on Friday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said on X that after speaking to Carney, he decided to pause the advertisement campaign on Monday so that the trade talks could resume — but the ads would continue to air during two World Series games being played in Toronto over the weekend.
Trump’s announcement of added tariffs on imports from Canada came after those statements. Trump and Carney had plans to attend the biannual Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Malaysia over the weekend, though it is unclear if the leaders will meet to discuss the latest trade row.
