President Trump on Saturday warned Canada of 100% tariffs in a social media post, saying that if Carney “thinks he is going to make Canada a ‘Drop Off Port’ for China to send goods and products into the United States, he is sorely mistaken.” Canada has agreed to lower tariffs on 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles to 6%, removing a 100% surtax, as part of a deal aimed at rebuilding ties with Beijing. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday warned that Canada could face 100% tariffs from the U.S. if the country enters into a free-trade agreement with China and allows itself to become a place where artificially cheap goods can enter the US supply chain. The moves by the U.S. followed a speech by Canadian President Mark Carney during the World Economic Forum in Davos last week, when he spoke about the need for middle powers to band together to counter aggressive coercion by the world’s superpowers. The Canadian leader didn’t mention any countries by name, but his comments were widely interpreted as aimed at the U.S.
Trump and key administration officials have denounced that bilateral agreement and warned of potential consequences, portending a difficult renegotiation for the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement this summer, reported Bloomberg. Canada’s minister in charge of U.S. trade, Dominic LeBlanc, said Saturday that Ottawa isn’t pursuing a free trade agreement with China and that the agreements between Carney and Xi aimed to resolve tariff disputes. More from Pro Farmer.
