Trump imposes a 50% US tariff on some Canadian goods, citing discrimination | International Business News

Tariffs apply to Canadian wine, hockey sticks, cement, and other products, raising fears of escalating trade tensions.

US President Donald Trump has imposed new tariffs of 50 per cent on many Canadian goods, citing “discrimination” by Ottawa against US beer, cars and milk.

The tariffs, ordered by Trump on Monday, will take effect in 30 days and cover a range of products, including wine, hockey sticks, and cement, according to a White House fact sheet.

Trump, who saw many of his prices was struck down by the Supreme Court earlier this year, it applied an untested law to new tariffs: Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930.

The latest tariffs do not apply to electricity, potash, and products already affected by tariffs, the White House said.

Most importantly, however, they will hit the things that are covered under US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA).

The announcement of the tariffs raised concerns about the rise of some businesses.

While Trump has worked to increase trade deals with US trading partners since returning to the presidency last year, the rules do not allow goods to enter his country under the North American Free Trade Agreement.

His latest move threatens to overturn a deal with the US’s second-largest trading partner and comes just days after he threatened Canada to increase tariffs because of the smoke that descended on the US.

The White House, in announcing the new tariffs, said Canada is one of two countries – along with China – to retaliate against Trump’s tariffs last year.

It also led to the fact that many Canadian provinces have stopped buying US beer, boycotting the trade because of Trump’s threat of tariffs and repeated calls for Canada to be treated as America’s “51st country”.

“Canada has removed US alcoholic beverages from Canadian shelves, been given access to milk from the European Union, and imposed tariffs on US car exports to Canada from companies returning to the United States,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer criticized in a statement.

The tax announcement aims to “hold Canada accountable for retaliation and discrimination”, he added.