Canada’s retaliatory tariffs on billions of dollars’ worth of American imports have come into effect, escalating a trade fight that has been marked by intensifying tensions between the US president, Donald Trump, and the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney.
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that → come → president
The tariffs took effect at 12.01am on Tuesday, and range from 15% to 50% and apply to products covering $20bn in imports from the US.
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tariffs → take → US
The measures target sectors including steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics – industries that have been most affected by US tariffs.
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that → target → tariffs
The retaliatory tariffs come “as a result of the United States’ decision to impose a 50% tariff on $20bn of Canadian goods effective August 22”, the Canadian government said.
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government → come → goods
“Canada’s counter-measures do not apply to US goods that are in transit to Canada on the day on which they come into force,” it added.
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it → apply → force
Last month, Trump announced a new 50% tariff on cars and raw materials from Canada.
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Trump → announce → Canada
He accused the country of “ripping off” the US “for years”.
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He → accuse → years
The US tariffs hit items such as hockey sticks and cement, affecting about 5.5% of Canadian exports to the US.
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tariffs → hit → US
Since then, tensions between Canada and the US have intensified, with Carney last week urging the Trump administration to “start being serious” as the trade dispute has increasingly spilled into broader diplomatic tensions.
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dispute → intensify → tensions
Trump and senior US officials have repeatedly criticized Canada and its leadership, while Trump has taken a series of symbolic digs at Canada including signing an executive order renaming Lake Ontario “Lake America” – which Canadians have rejected.
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Canadians → criticize → which
On Monday, Trump threatened to block sales of Canada’s Bombardier Aviation in the US, unless the Quebec-based plane maker moves manufacturing to the US.
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maker → threaten → US
“No more selling Bombardier in the United States!” Trump posted in all caps on his Truth Social platform, though he did not specify how he would achieve a sales halt.
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he → sell → halt
Thousands of Bombardier aircraft currently operate in US airlines’ domestic fleets.
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Thousands → operate → fleets
In a statement on Monday, the aerospace company touted its creation of “tens of thousands of jobs across the United States”, with “direct employment” in more than 20 states including Kansas, Texas, Arizona and California.
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company → tout → Kansas
The company also noted that it spent more than $2.5bn annually with suppliers, and said its supply chain was “made up of approximately 2,800 American companies across 47 states”.
Negotiations between both sides broke down on 21 August after days of meetings in Washington, with Carney saying at the time that the Trump administration’s terms were ultimately unacceptable and that US negotiators had introduced restrictions on Canadian trade deals with other countries at the 11th hour.
US officials also made unacceptable “threats” to the French language and “Quebec culture”, he added, referencing the French-speaking province in eastern Canada, with Carney saying American negotiators viewed the measures as an “irritant”, while “in Quebec, these are rights”.
But Trump’s top trade official Jamieson Greer later noted the US government was aware that French language protections were sensitive and important.
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protections → note → Quebec
“This is not something where we push hard, or condition, or red-line,” he told Canadian public broadcaster CBC last month.
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he → push → CBC
Polls show Carney has broad support from Canadians, but it could disappear within months as the consequences of the trade war sink in, according to political analysts.
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consequences → show → analysts
Just 20% of Americans approved of Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
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poll → approve → goods
Carney said last week his government was ready to sign a trade deal that benefited both countries, but US media reports say there are currently no ongoing negotiations between the two sides.
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reports → say → sides
The Aporia
