Trump signs order imposing new 50% tariffs on certain Canadian goods

U.S. President Donald Trump signed executive orders Monday to impose new 50% tariffs on a wide range of Canadian goods, claiming that Ottawa has engaged in discriminatory treatment against American alcohol, automobile, and dairy products. The tariffs will take effect in 30 days and cover items such as wine, hockey sticks, and cement, according to a White House fact sheet. Trump invoked a rarely used legal provision, Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which allows action against countries deemed to practice discriminatory trade policies.

The new duties will not apply to energy, potash, or goods already subject to sector-specific tariffs, the White House said. However, crucially, they will hit products covered under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). Since returning to the presidency last year, Trump has imposed sweeping tariffs on U.S. trading partners, but these have generally included broad exemptions for goods entering under the North American free trade pact. This latest move threatens to further strain relations between Washington and Ottawa, coming just days after Trump threatened Canada with increased tariffs over smoke from raging wildfires that drifted into the United States.