U.S. Puts 50% Tariffs on $20 Billion of Canadian Goods After Talks Fail

New U.S. tariffs of 50 percent on about $20 billion of Canadian goods took effect early Saturday after three days of talks in Washington ended without a trade deal, Al Jazeera and AFP reported. The duties took effect at 12:01 a.m. Eastern time, when President Trump’s deadline expired. They cover about 5 percent of Canada’s exports to the United States, according to Al Jazeera, and add to existing U.S. tariffs on steel, lumber and autos.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Canada will match the tariffs “dollar for dollar to protect our workers and businesses,” AFP reported. Al Jazeera said the counter-tariffs begin Sept. 8 and will target American steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural machinery, paper and electronics. Carney said the progress made “has not been enough to meet our objectives for Canadians” and said the U.S. proposed new terms that were “uneconomic, unfair” and “called into question the reliability of any deal,” according to Al Jazeera. He also outlined new measures to support workers and businesses.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer put the blame on Ottawa. Canada, he said, “declined to finalise the trade deal under the terms agreed earlier this week,” and “new demands and walkbacks of other commitments by Canada have upended the careful balance,” AFP and Al Jazeera reported. Greer also said Canada had maintained prolonged retaliation, including prohibitions on certain American goods and services, according to AFP. A senior U.S. official told AFP there are no further scheduled meetings for now. AFP also reported that Washington was particularly irritated by the removal of U.S. alcohol from liquor stores.

President Trump said, AFP reported, that the United States “should be able to have a deal with Canada,” citing his good relationship with Carney. Canada’s lead negotiator, Dominic LeBlanc, had said after Friday’s talks there was “more work to do,” AFP reported.

The reports differ on what is covered. AFP said the products range from hockey sticks to cement, Al Jazeera listed electronics, industrial machinery and dairy products, and Bloomberg Government said plywood, liquor and electrical equipment are among them. The administration announced the tariffs in July, accusing Canada of “discriminatory treatment of American products,” Al Jazeera reported. Trump imposed tariffs on key Canadian imports early in his second term, in 2025, and Ottawa retaliated then too.

For American households and businesses the effects come through prices. Julian Karaguesian, a trade expert at McGill University, warned that 50 percent tariffs would effectively price hundreds of Canadian goods out of the U.S. market, and Al Jazeera said unnamed experts warn the higher import taxes could also bring price increases for U.S. consumers. California Gov. Gavin Newsom called Canada “our closest ally,” Al Jazeera reported.