2 weeks Ago By [email protected] (Sima Shakeri)
The latest news as Donald Trump’s administration imposes tariffs on Canada. Web links to longer stories if available . This file is done being updated for the day.
10:00 p.m.: Catherine Cobden, President and CEO of the Canadian Steel Producers Association (CSPA), called Trump’s announcement about tariffs on Canadian products “deeply disappointing.
” “The North American steel industry is highly integrated across the Canadian and U.S. border.
With $20B in annual steel trade between our nations, these tariffs will cause significant disruption and economic hardship in both Canada and the United States. Disruptions that will have negative effects on businesses, workers and their families,” Cobden said in a statement. The Canadian prime minister spoke after President Donald Trump on Saturday signed an order to impose stiff tariffs on imports from Mexico, Canada and China.
(AP Video / Feb. 1, 2025) “We are also concerned that the tremendous effort Canada has taken to safeguard the North American marketplace from unfair steel trade has gone unnoticed..
. In response to these new tariffs, the CSPA welcomes the Government of Canada’s decisive action through retaliation as well as through supportive approaches to help Canada’s industries.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau listens to a question after addressing media following the imposition of a raft of tariffs by U.
S. President Donald Trump against Canada, Mexico and China, in Ottawa, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025.
Tariffs of 10 per cent on Canadian energy and 25 per cent on everything else will begin on Feb. 4. 9:30 p.
m.: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Canada will impose 25 per cent immediate retaliatory tariffs on American goods worth $30 billion starting Tuesday in the wake of U.S.
President Donald Trump’s move to slap Canada with devastating duties. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrives to address media following the imposition of a raft of tariffs by U.S.
President Donald Trump against Canada, Mexico and China, in Ottawa, Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025. Tariffs of 10 per cent on Canadian energy and 25 per cent on everything else will begin on Feb.
4. Trudeau says an additional $125 billion in duties on American products will follow in 21 days, allowing Canadian consumers and supply chains to find alternatives. Canada’s retaliation plan will include everyday items such as American beer, wine, bourbon, fruits and fruit juices, including orange juice, along with vegetables, perfume, clothing and shoes, Trudeau said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addresses media following the imposition of a raft of tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump against Canada, Mexico and China, in Ottawa, Saturday, Feb.
1, 2025. Minister of Public Safety David McGuinty, left to right, Global Affairs Minister Melanie Joly and Minister of Governmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc look on. Trudeau called on Canadians to buy domestic products where they can over American-origin products they’re used to purchasing, and swap any U.
S. vacation plans with staycations or travel across Canada. “Now is also the time to choose Canada,” Trudeau said.
“There are many ways for you to do your part. That might mean checking the labels at the supermarket and picking Canadian-made products.” In his news conference, Trudeau said he has not been able to personally contact the president about the tariffs.
He also reflected on the long history of the Canada-U.S. relationship.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reacts to U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to place 25% tariffs on Canadian goods and 10% tariffs on Canadian energy entering the United States.
9:10 p.m.: Hockey fans at the Canadian Tire Centre also showed their displeasure at the tariff news Saturday evening.
Loud boos could be heard during the Star Spangled Banner before the Ottawa Senators faced off against the visiting Minnesota Wild. 8:50 p.m.
: Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum said she instructed the economy minister to kick off a response plan that includes retaliatory tariffs against the US’s promised 25% levies. Sheinbaum said the country would also implement nontariff measures, while calling for co-operation with the U.S.
on topics including security and addressing the fentanyl public health crisis. Trucks queue next to the border wall before crossing to the United States at Otay commercial port in Tijuana, Mexico, on Jan. 22, 2025.
8:44 p .m.: B.
C. Premier David Eby announced in a news release on Saturday his province’s initial response to the American tariffs, calling the move an “unprecedented attack.” Eby said his first step is “directing the BC Liquor Distribution Branch to immediately stop buying American liquor from ‘red states’,” and having the top-selling “red-state” brands removed from shelves while directing his government and Crown corporations “to buy Canadian goods and services first.
” The Premier of Canadian province of British Columbia, David Eby, called on residents to stop buying liquor from U.S. “red” states and said it was removing American alcohol brands from government store shelves as a response to the tariffs.
(AP Video / Feb. 1, 2025) 8:40 p.m: Bonnie Crombie, leader of the Ontario Liberal party, condemned the tariffs as well as Ford’s response.
“Donald Trump has declared war on us. On our workers, our jobs, our factories and our people. In the face of such a devastating threat — with hundreds of thousands of jobs hanging by a thread — we need a premier who puts our people first.
And his own politics last,” Crombie said . 8:20 p.m.
: Donald Trump has framed the tariffs as a way to force a crackdown against people illegally crossing its borders, as well as to force stronger action to prevent the potent drug fentanyl from being smuggled between North American countries. A reality check from the Star has found that while fentanyl seizures in the U.S.
northern border region increased over the past year, they only represent a fraction of the total that U.S. authorities have intercepted over the last two years.
Additionally, while the number of people U.S. border agents apprehended in the northern border region under the “Title 8” authority — detaining someone not allowed in the U.
S. — rose to 23,721 during the 2024 fiscal year, apprehensions at the southern border exceeded 1.5 million.
Read more from the Star’s politics team. The US and Canadian flags fly on the US side of the St. Clair River near the Bluewater Bridge border crossing between Sarnia, Ontario and Port Huron, Michigan on January 29, 2025.
US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs on Canada and Mexico are set to roil supply chains for products ranging from automobiles to avocados — with industries girding for cost increases. 8:18 p.m.
: Statistics Canada says the value of Canadian exports to the United States in 2023 exceeded $594 billion. More than 43 per cent of that came from just six industries: oil and gas extraction, oil and gas refining, auto manufacturing, aluminum production and processing, aerospace and crop and animal production. Read the full story from the Canadian Press.
8:14 p.m.: With U.
S. tariffs on Canadian goods set to begin Tuesday, business groups say even the reduced tariff on Canadian energy will damage economies on both sides of the border. Scott Crockatt at the Business Council of Alberta says there is some relief from the oil and gas sector that they will see a lower levy, but there are no victory dances being done.
Read the full story from the Canadian Press. Canadian and American flags fly near the Ambassador Bridge at the Canada-USA border crossing in Windsor, Ont. on Saturday, March 21, 2020.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Rob Gurdebeke 7:55 p.m.: Quebec Premier François Legault addressed the proposed tariffs Saturday, calling them “unjust.
” “Mr. Trump spoke specifically about aluminum and steel, key sectors that sustain our regions with good-paying jobs. We will protect our economy and defend our workers.
We will respond quickly and without hesitation. But the goal is to end these tariffs as quickly as possible. As soon as we know the exact content of the presidential decrees concerning these unjustified tariffs, I will react to inform Quebecers of what happens next,” Legault said.
7:49 p.m.: What is a tariff? What do tariffs mean for the economy? How fast could we see prices on store shelves affected? These are a few of the questions answered in this explainer from the Canadian Press .
TORONTO - U.S. President Donald Trump is going to hit Canadian goods with 25 per cent tariffs on 7:45 p.
m.: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau posted on X following the announcement of tariffs. “I’ve met with the Premiers and our Cabinet today, and I’ll be speaking with President Sheinbaum of Mexico shortly,” he wrote, adding that he would be speaking with Canadians this evening.
The United States has confirmed that it intends to impose 25% tariffs on most Canadian goods, with 10% tariffs on energy, starting February 4. I’ve met with the Premiers and our Cabinet today, and I’ll be speaking with President Sheinbaum of Mexico shortly. We did.
.. 7:40 p.
m.: Leaders across Canada are calling for retaliation and unity in response to U.S.
President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian imports. Read the full story from the Star’s Abby O’Brien and Kristjan Lautens. B.
C. Premier David Eby called the tariffs an “unprecedented attack” and directed his province’s 7:18 p.m.
: The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers said the tariffs will boost inflation in the U.S. and harm both countries’ economies.
“We are deeply disappointed that U.S. President Trump has decided to institute tariffs on Canadian goods.
Nobody wins with the introduction of tariffs on Canadian energy. These tariffs undermine our mutually beneficial relationship and are likely to increase costs and inflation for American consumers while damaging the economies of both countries,” said CAPP president and CEO Lisa Baiton. “With the complexity of North American and global oil and natural markets, it is difficult to predict how the application of a 10 percent tariff on Canadian oil and gas will impact supply, demand and trade patterns.
What we do know is that Canadian producers have demonstrated they are innovative and resilient and will find the best ways to mitigate the impact of tariffs and realign themselves to thrive in a dynamic global market. CAPP and our members will need to take the necessary time to better understand how these tariffs will be applied and their impact to oil and natural gas trade for Canada before commenting further.” 7:10 p.
m.: Jim Stanford, chief economist at the Centre for Future Work, estimated that up to a million Canadians could lose their jobs from the impact of Trump’s tariffs, and that the country’s economy could shrink by 2.5 per cent in the first year of the tariffs.
“There’s almost certain to be a recession,” Stanford said. 7:06 p.m.
: Speaking to CNN, Ontario PC leader Doug Ford stressed that impacts would be felt on both sides of the border and maintained imposing reciprocating tariffs on electricity, which could see power cut to over 1.5 million homes in the U.S.
, was not off the table. “That’s the last thing I want to do,” he said, “but that’s a tool that we have in our toolbox.” President Trump’s decision to tariff Canada is extremely disappointing and will hurt millions of workers on both sides of the border.
We don’t want to be here, but make no mistake: Canada will hit back and we’ll hit back hard. pic.twitter.
com/BcqMR4yfq3 Ford also floated the possibility of placing tariffs on crude oil (Canada currently supplies 60 per cent of American total oil imports) and the automotive industry. Ultimately, he said, he’d rather strike a deal with the states, and expressed a desire to sit down with the U.S.
president to discuss a strengthened partnership. 7:01 p.m.
: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals have yet to formally respond to Trump’s tariff response, but Trudeau, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly, Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Public Safety Minister David McGuinty are expected to address reporters at 8:30 pm ET. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre called on the government to recall Parliament, which has been prorogued until late March. He issued six demands, including retaliating with “dollar-for-dollar tariffs carefully aimed at maximizing impact on American companies while minimizing impact on Canadian consumers” and sending all revenues generated by tariffs back to “affected workers and businesses.
” NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, meanwhile, said Trump had “unleashed an unprecedented trade war” against its northern neighbour and said Ottawa must offer relief to affected Canadians and put forward a “strong commitment to buy Canadian. Canada’s history of relying on the U.S.
for nearly 80 per cent of its exports means that if U.S. 6:59 p.
m: Trump’s tariffs could shrink the size of the Canadian economy by tens of billions of dollars, cost “hundreds of thousands” of jobs, push the country into a recession and crush the loonie, said Pedro Antunes, chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada. “It’s absolute madness,” said Antunes. “We could be looking at a 60-cent dollar within a week.
” The Canadian Chamber of Commerce also blasted the tariffs. “President Trump’s profoundly disturbing decision to impose tariffs will have immediate and direct consequences on Canadian and American livelihoods. Tariffs will drastically increase the cost of everything for everyone: every day these tariffs are in place hurts families, communities, and businesses,” CCC CEO Candace Laing said in an emailed statement.
The CEO of the Ontario Chamber of Commerce said the tariffs will hurt businesses and consumers on both sides of the border. “It makes no economic sense,” said Daniel Tisch. “Trump isn’t putting America first.
He’s more likely to ensure all of North America finishes last.” 6:54 p.m.
: When reached by the Star, NDP leader Marit Stiles urged the Canadian provinces to stand together to “levy a smart, tough tariff response.” She claimed Ford, who days earlier called a provincial snap election, had “quit his job on the eve of these tariffs to try and secure himself a third term.” Ontario Green leader Mike Schneider also criticized Ford’s decision in wake of the tariffs, and floated the creation of a ‘tariff taskforce’ to work across party lines.
The Ontario Liberals have not yet responded to the Star’s request for comment. 6:00 p.m.
: NDP leader Jagmeet Singh is calling on the federal government to protect workers as it responds to the incoming tariffs from the U.S. 5:46 p.
m.: Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she is disappointed by the looming tariffs on Canadian goods, including 10 per cent on Canadian energy. 5:34 p.
m.: Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre condemned the “massive, unjust and unjustified tariffs on Canada’s already weak economy” in a press release. 5:24 p.
m.: In a statement issued Saturday evening, Ontario PC leader Doug Ford said he was “extremely disappointed” in Trump’s decision to “walk away from a trading relationship that, for decades, has made life better for millions,” and stressed that impacts would be felt on both sides of the border. Ford said the coming weeks could be “incredibly difficult” for Ontario, estimating the tariffs could put nearly 500,000 jobs across the province at risk and urging the federal government to come back with a “forceful” response that matches the U.
S. tariffs “dollar for dollar.” 5:20 p.
m.: Federal Liberal Party leadership candidate Mark Carney says the tariffs “are a clear violation of our trade agreements and require the most serious trade and economic responses in our history.” President Donald Trump sits in the Oval Office of the White House after signing executive orders on Jan.
23, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 5:15 p.
m.: U.S.
President Donald Trump is officially imposing 25 per cent tariffs on almost all Canadian goods and a 10 per cent tariff on Canadian energy products, signing an executive order Saturday that declared the edict will come into effect Tuesday. Read more from the Star’s politics team. 3:50 p.
m.: Unifor, the country’s largest private sector union, says Canada must hit back “hard and fast” as U.S.
President Donald Trump declares economic war on Canadian workers. 3:20 p.m.
: Government sources say U.S. President Donald Trump will hit Canada with 25 per cent tariffs on Tuesday, while imposing a lower 10 per cent duty on energy imports.
With files from the Canadian Press and Bloomberg.
