(Washington) After terminating trade talks between the two countries due to Canada's anti-tariff advertising, US President Trump announced a 10% tariff increase on Canadian goods.
A recent advertisement in Ontario, Canada, quoted former US President Reagan, emphasizing that "high tariffs will inevitably provoke foreign retaliation and intensify trade wars." Trump expressed strong dissatisfaction with the advertisement and, citing false advertising, terminated all trade negotiations with Canada.
Ontario authorities later announced they would stop running the ad starting Monday, October 27th. The ad aired as scheduled during the Major League Baseball World Series last Friday, October 24th, which coincidentally featured the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers, adding a touch of drama to the trade dispute.
The next day, Trump posted on social media: "Their ad should have been taken down immediately, yet they allowed it to air last night during the World Series, even though they knew it was a fraud."
He then announced that, citing Canada's "gross misrepresentations and hostile behavior," he would increase existing tariffs on Canada by 10% on imported Canadian goods.
Further Reading
The United States and Canada currently remain under the existing United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Under the agreement, approximately 85% of bilateral cross-border trade remains tariff-free. It is unclear which products will be affected by Trump's newly announced tariffs.
Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney will both attend the ASEAN summit in Malaysia and the subsequent Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea. However, Trump has stated that he does not plan to meet with Carney at either summit.
The White House has not yet commented on Trump's latest tariff remarks. Canadian Minister of Trade LeBlanc stated that Canada remains committed to achieving outcomes that benefit workers and families in both countries and stressed that direct dialogue is the best path to progress.
Regarding Ontario's editing of Reagan's speech, the Ronald Reagan Foundation stated that the Ontario government used selective audio and video, and the foundation may take legal action.
