U.S. to pause some of Trump’s tariffs on Canada until April 2; tariffs will still apply on goods that fall outside existing free trade agreement

 

What we know so far

• Some tariffs on Canada, Mexico have been paused until April 2. Read more here.
• It remains unclear what volume of Canadian exports fall outside the trade deal rules and will still be affected by tariffs. The White House suggested it’s a lot - 62 per cent.
• Doug Ford to slap a 25% tax on electricity sent to 1.5 million U.S. customers.  
• Read updates on Thursday from the Canadian Press.

6:05 p.m. Canada halts second wave of tariffs after Trump announces pause, but questions remain  

OTTAWA – Canada and Mexico are getting temporary reprieves from U.S. tariffs until April 2, when President Donald Trump threatens sweeping tariffs on all global imports.

Trump signed new executive orders Thursday that delay tariffs on products sold into the U.S. that comply with the renegotiated North America free trade deal’s rules on country of origin and content. However, he said 25 per cent tariffs scheduled to take effect on steel and aluminum imports will still go ahead next week on Mar. 12, as planned.

Still, Finance Minister Dominic LeBlanc, said Ottawa would delay the second phase of Canada’s retaliatory counter-tariffs on $125 billion worth of American imports until April 2, while the first phase against $30 billion worth of American products would remain in place.

So too does Premier Doug Ford’s decision to impose a 25 per cent export tax on Ontario electricity sold stateside, starting Monday. Ford issued a ministerial directive slapping the new levy on Ontario electricity that powers 1.5 million homes in New York, Michigan and Minnesota, saying “We have to follow through until he drops tariffs completely.” American booze will stay off LCBO shelves as well, he said.

https://www.thestar.com/politics/federal/trump-tariffs-and-canada/article_7d3a7d0c-fa82-11ef-9c27-6b0e56228393.html