The 50% tariffs imposed by the United States on products imported from Canada came into force this Saturday (22), after trade negotiations between the two countries ended without consensus on Friday (21).
In response, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney suspended discussions and classified the last-minute demands presented by Donald Trump’s government as “unfair and economically unfeasible”. Carney said the country will respond to taxation in kind, matching US tariffs to protect Canadian businesses and workers.
On the other hand, US trade representative Jamieson Greer stated that Canada refused to close the deal under the terms that had been forwarded earlier in the week.
The White House based the application of the tariffs on the so-called Section 338 of United States legislation. The Trump administration says that American producers suffer discriminatory treatment in the neighboring market, especially in the dairy, automotive and alcoholic beverage sectors.
The two countries negotiated the imposition of these tariffs, announced in July, through meetings led by Canadian Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc and Jamieson Greer. Trump even granted three additional days of exemption last week to try to reach an understanding, but the talks did not progress.
The duties affect goods valued at around 20 billion dollars (approximately R$102 billion), which is equivalent to 5.5% of all Canadian exports to the American market. Among the items affected are construction materials, such as cement, and sporting goods, such as hockey sticks.
Currently, there are no new rounds of meetings scheduled between the two delegations. In addition to the immediate tariff dispute, the countries still need to negotiate revisions to the North American Free Trade Agreement, an agreement shared with Mexico that the United States government refused to renew last month.
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
