{"id":580439,"date":"2026-08-26T02:24:18","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T02:24:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/580439\/"},"modified":"2026-08-26T02:24:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T02:24:18","slug":"canada-strikes-back-at-us-with-retaliatory-tariffs-as-trade-war-escalates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/580439\/","title":{"rendered":"Canada strikes back at US with retaliatory tariffs as trade war escalates"},"content":{"rendered":"

Canada struck back at the United States on Tuesday (local time) with retaliatory tariffs on about US$20 billion (NZ$33.5 billion) worth of American goods, including steel, dairy products, appliances and farm equipment, as the trade war between the once-friendly neighbours escalated sharply.<\/p>\n

The confrontation threatened one of the world\u2019s largest trading relationships<\/a> and further strained ties between the United States and a country long considered one of its closest allies. A prolonged dispute could raise costs for American businesses and consumers less than two-and-a-half months before the midterm elections.<\/p>\n

The new tariffs extended well beyond industrial goods, hitting everyday purchases such as seafood, cheese, clothing, cosmetics and toilet paper, with some facing duties as high as 50%<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe did not choose this conflict, but when our economic integration is used as a weapon rather than the foundation for a win-win partnership, we need to stand up,\u201d Finance Minister Fran\u00e7ois-Philippe Champagne said in French, calling the situation “an unprecedented challenge imposed on Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n

Industry Minister M\u00e9lanie Joly urged Canadians to buy Canadian goods, saying doing so would help protect jobs and launch a \u201cmovement of resistance\u201d. She said Canada selected some American products for tariffs to put political pressure on particular US states. Canadian officials used a similar strategy during Trump\u2019s first term, when retaliatory tariffs targeted Kentucky whiskey, Florida orange juice and Wisconsin yoghurt.<\/p>\n

Canada’s retaliation came after the Trump administration imposed 50% tariffs on Canadian goods over the weekend following the collapse of trade negotiations<\/a>. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney accused Washington of trying to subordinate Canada and said US demands during the failed talks showed that Americans wanted to \u201cdestroy our major industries.”<\/p>\n

Trump told Canadian leaders to ‘fall in line’<\/p>\n

\"Canada<\/p>\n

Canada Prime Minister Mark Carney and President Donald Trump hold a press conference at the White House in Washington, DC, October 7, 2025. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Trump intensified the confrontation Monday, telling Canadian leaders to \u201cfall in line\u201d or face consequences \u201cfar WORSE\u201d than existing tariffs and threatening new 50% tariffs on Canadian vehicles, auto parts and steel.<\/p>\n

Trump added another provocation Tuesday, saying the United States was giving \u201cserious consideration\u201d to renaming Lake Ontario \u201cLake America\u201d in a feud with Ontario Premier Doug Ford. Such a change would be reminiscent of the Republican president\u2019s unilateral action last year by executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.<\/p>\n

In the hours before Canada’s announcement, Trump went on a social media tear against the country, accusing it of ripping off American farmers and driving American companies out of business.<\/p>\n

\u201cI deal with many countries, and Canada is easily the most difficult and unreasonable,\u201d Trump wrote in one post. \u201cThey feel entitled, but they are not a State, and will be entitled no longer!\u201d<\/p>\n

Tariffs on many US products would double<\/p>\n

\"Minister<\/p>\n

Minister of Finance and National Revenue Francois-Philippe Champagne speaks at a news conference on Canada’s response to US tariffs, at a roofing company in Ottawa, on Tuesday, August 25, 2026. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n

The tariffs will take effect September 8 at rates of 15%, 25% and 50%, with Canada matching the corresponding US tariff rate on more than 700 products such as pulp and paper and electronics. The tariffs on many American products would double from 25% to 50%, with the largest share of the new measures affecting steel and aluminium.<\/p>\n

Canadian officials said the goal is not to raise revenue but to protect Canadian companies and reduce US imports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

US steel imports, for example, have already fallen 30% since Canada imposed a 25% tariff, and the new 50% rate is expected to cut them further, Canadian officials said.<\/p>\n

Goods facing 50% tariffs<\/a> include some steel and aluminium products, furniture and clothing. Appliances, dairy products including cheese, fish and seafood, and certain steel and aluminium derivatives will face 25% tariffs. Existing Canadian countertariffs on US autos will remain in place.<\/p>\n

Canada also announced a support package for workers and businesses affected by the dispute worth $7.5 billion in Canadian dollars (NZ$9 billion).<\/p>\n

Canadian officials acknowledged the counter tariffs will raise costs for some businesses and consumers but said they expect the overall economic effects to be moderate.<\/p>\n

They said the government has provided more than $30 billion Canadian dollars (NZ$36 billion) in tariff-related support since the beginning of 2025 \u2014 far more than it has collected in retaliatory duties \u2014 as it tries to cushion the blow from the trade fight.<\/p>\n

Countries have integrated supply chains<\/p>\n

\"Rolled<\/p>\n

Rolled coils of steel sit in the yard at the ArcelorMittal Dofasco steel plant in Hamilton, Ontario on Thursday, August 20, 2026. (Source: Associated Press)<\/p>\n

Canada and the United States have deeply integrated supply chains across autos, energy, agriculture and manufacturing, making a prolonged trade fight potentially costly for businesses and workers on both sides of the border.<\/p>\n

Businesses and consumers are caught in the middle, facing uncertainty about how much prices may increase.<\/p>\n

Michael Howard II, owner of a furniture business in Warren, Michigan, outside Detroit, said the tariffs will hamper the \u201cability for us to put food on the table for our family” and affect “the ability for us to give back to our community\u201d.<\/p>\n

Howard and his wife started their business a decade ago. They make and sell everything from dining room tables to bookcases.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo say that we don\u2019t need Canada is just disingenuous,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s dishonest. And it\u2019s just absolutely not truthful. We need our neighbour, but also they need us.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Monday (local time), Carney said US negotiators had raised objections to French-language content on streaming platforms and French-language labelling rules. He rejected the idea that those issues were negotiable, saying in French: \u201cFor the Americans, questions about the French language, Quebec culture, francophone culture and Canadian culture are irritants. Here in Quebec, here in Canada, they are rights.”<\/p>\n

In a social media post early Tuesday, Trump wrote: \u201cI would never interfere with Canadians speaking French! In fact, I have never even thought of doing such a stupid thing. This lie was made up by a weak and ineffective Prime Minister in an attempt to gain political support, which he has totally lost, from the people of Quebec. I love French Canadians!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Canada struck back at the United States on Tuesday (local time) with retaliatory tariffs on about US$20 billion…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":580440,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[138,65,219,42,43,64,40,38,41,39,66],"class_list":["post-580439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-business","tag-donald-trump","tag-economy","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-north-america","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories","tag-us-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/580439","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=580439"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/580439\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/580440"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=580439"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=580439"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=580439"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}