Canada, Mexico and China have promised to hit back after the imposition of sweeping US tariffs announced by Donald Trump on Saturday.
Trump claimed the move was in response to a âmajor threatâ from illegal immigration and drugs. Canadian and Mexican exports to the US will face a 25 percent tariff starting Tuesday, although energy resources from Canada will have a lower 10 percent levy.
Goods from China, which already face various rates of duties, will see an additional 10 percent tariff. A tariff is a domestic tax placed on goods as they enter a country, proportional to the value of the import.
Trump invoked the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in imposing the tariffs, with the White House saying âthe extraordinary threat posed by illegal aliens and drugs, including deadly fentanyl, constitutes a national emergency.â
The aim is to hold all three countries âaccountable to their promises of halting illegal immigration and stopping poisonous fentanyl and other drugs from flowing into our country,â the White House added.
How has China, Canada and Mexico reacted to the sweeping tariff announcement?
Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported a statement from Chinaâs commerce ministry that it would take âcorresponding countermeasuresâ and file a claim against Washington at the World Trade Organization.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced that her country would impose retaliatory tariffs.
Sheinbaum said she had told her economy minister âto implement Plan B that we have been working on, which includes tariff and non-tariff measures in defense of Mexicoâs interests.â
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau – who spoke with Sheinbaum – separately said his country would hit back with 25 percent levies of its own on select American goods worth Can$155 billion (US$106.6 billion), with a first round on Tuesday followed by a second one in three weeks.
âWeâre certainly not looking to escalate. But we will stand up for Canada, for Canadians, for Canadian jobs,â he said, as he warned of a fracture in longstanding Canada-US ties.
By Yohannes Lowe and Vicky Graham
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Trump Stirs Tariff Pot With Fresh Threats on EU and a Feb 1 Deadline for China
US President Donald Trump has vowed to hit the European Union with tariffs and said his administration was discussing a 10 percent punitive duty on Chinese imports because fentanyl is being sent from China to the US.
