U.S. President Donald Trump has once again turned the attention of his aggressive trade agenda on Canada with yet a new tariff threat.
In a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney posted to Truth Social, Trump threatened a 35 per cent tariff on “Canadian products sent into the United States, separate from all Sectoral Tariffs.”
“If for any reason you decide to raise your Tariffs, then, whatever the number you choose to raise them by, will be added onto the 35 per cent that we charge,” the letter adds.
The new tariff would take effect on Aug. 1.
The letter once again references fentanyl allegedly “pouring into” the U.S. from Canada, but also cites other complaints, including trade deficits and Canadian supply management in the dairy sector.
The U.S. government’s own statistics showing minuscule amounts of fentanyl entering the U.S. from Canada were buttressed earlier this month by a report from New York think tank The Manhattan Institute, which found 99 per cent of the pills and 97 per cent of the powered form of the drug entering the U.S. in the last decade came from Mexico.
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Global News is seeking comment from the Prime Minister’s Office, International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu and Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand.
The new threat comes as Canada and the U.S. are locked in negotiations over a wider economic and security agreement, with a July 21 target date.
Canada is already dealing with 25 per cent U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum.
On Tuesday, Trump vowed a new 50 per cent tariff on copper and 200 per cent tariff on pharmaceuticals. More than half of Canada’s copper exports go to the U.S.
Earlier Thursday, Industry Minister Mélanie Joly vowed to “fight” that tariff.
In March, Trump imposed sweeping 25 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods in March, but days later carved out a major exception for exports compliant with the Canada-U.S.-Mexico agreement.
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