US President Donald Trump said he would follow through on his threat to impose 25 per cent tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico on February 1, citing the flow of fentanyl and large trade deficits as among the reasons for his decision.
“We’ll be announcing the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for a number of reasons,” Trump told reporters Thursday in the Oval Office as he signed executive actions in response to a deadly plane collision.
“No 1 is the people that have poured into our country so horribly and so much. No 2 are the drugs, fentanyl and everything else that have come into the country. No 3 are the massive subsidies that we’re giving to Canada and to Mexico in the form of deficits,” he said.
West Texas Intermediate oil futures climbed above US$73 a barrel following the comments. The US dollar wiped out an earlier loss to touch the day’s high after the remarks, while the Canadian dollar and Mexican peso both plunged. US Treasuries pared their gains.
Trump indicated the 25 per cent rate could represent a floor, saying that the tariff levels “may or may not rise with time”.
But the US president did suggest he was still considering if one significant import – oil – would be exempted. Trump said would be making a determination as soon as Thursday evening, basing his decision upon the price of oil.
