Trump says Canadian and Mexican tariffs will begin on March 4, coupled with China’s increase
President Trump said Thursday morning that tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico will take effect on March 4 starting March 4, claiming that the countries have not yet taken enough action to prevent drug flows into the United States.
China will also face 10% tariffs next week, a 10% tariff he imposed earlier this month, the president wrote in a post about the Truth Society.
“Drugs are still pouring into our country at high and unacceptable levels in Mexico and Canada,” he said. “A large portion of these drugs are made in the form of fentanyl and are provided by China.” He added that taxation is necessary until the drugs “stop or are severely restricted.”
Trump said in the Oval Office Thursday afternoon that progress has been made in reducing immigration movements, but said he has not seen progress on drugs, especially fentanyl.
“These drugs continue to flood into our country, killing hundreds of thousands of people,” he said.
Mr. Trump threatened to impose tariffs on all products in Canada, Mexico and China in early February, and his efforts were aimed at blocking the movement of immigrants and drugs. But Mr. Trump suspended tariffs for a month after Mexico and Canada promised measures such as sending more troops to the border, and after Canada’s appointment of the “Fentanyl Tsar” was announced.
He imposed a 10% tariff on all Chinese products, except for the products that were already in place, prompting China to retaliate against its own tariffs on American goods.
Mr. Trump said on Thursday that he would now impose a 10% tax on Chinese goods, a decision he had not announced before. These tariffs will be added to Mr. Trump’s 10% to 25% tariffs imposed on China in his first semester of more than $300 billion, which is still in effect to a large extent.
“It’s 10 plus 10,” Mr Trump said, “The 10% on March 4 will be the 10% existing on February 1.
Since Mr. Trump revealed plans to impose tariffs on three countries in late January, the Mexican and Canadian governments have been working to ease tensions and convinced Mr. Trump that they have been working to regulate the borders.
By contrast, China’s efforts seem even more confusing. Mr. Trump’s threat to additional tariffs could be an effort to bring Chinese to the table for more negotiations.
Additional tariffs from the country’s three largest trading partners will only increase economic pressure on a series of actions by Mr. Trump. Companies that import auto parts, medical equipment, vegetables and clothing to the United States are once again working to absorb additional costs.
Three textile associations issued a joint statement Thursday urging the president to reach an agreement with Mexico and Canada and avoid a 25% tariff, believing that the three countries have a comprehensive North American supply chain that generates $20 billion in trade and supports more than 1.6 million jobs.
The organizations say that under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement, the total global textile exports of the U.S. textile industry are $12.3 billion, or 53% of the total global textile exports, and these products return to finished products in the U.S., the organizations said. Mr. Trump negotiated the terms of the agreement during his first term, and the president signed the trade deal in 2020.
Jay Foreman, CEO of toy company Basic Fun, produces toys like Tonka Trucks and Lincoln Logs in China, saying China’s additional 10% tariffs are a “nightmare.” He said his company is scrambling to “figure how best to handle and reduce tariffs”.
“We just figured out how to work with 10%. We can’t find a way to absorb 20%. It has to go through completely,” he said, indicating that the cost of consumers will rise.
Canadian and Mexican officials have been trying to dissuade the Trump administration from pushing against tariffs, including this week’s meeting with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik.
Mr. Trump’s threat poses a special dilemma for Canadian officials who believe Canadian-made fentanyl does not pose an increasing threat to the United States.
Last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents intercepted about 19 kilograms of fentanyl at the Canadian border, while cartels produced the drug in large quantities. A congressional committee aimed at reducing drug inflows to the United States has found that Canada is not the primary source of fentanyl or its precursor chemicals.
By contrast, Mexico is the main source of fentanyl transportation. In recent months, the Mexican government has expanded its operations in Sinaloa and has erupted with advanced arrests, with busts and drug seizures in the drug lab that rocked the operations of the Sinaloa cartel there.
After Mr. Trump imposed a 25% tariff on Mexican exports earlier this month, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum sent 10,000 National Guard to the border and sent hundreds of soldiers to Sinaloa, a major hub for fentanyl, resulting in high levels of arrests and drug lab attacks.
It is unclear whether these efforts are enough to make Mr. Trump tinker. His post on Thursday seemed to be to clarify when he spoke at the White House on Wednesday, when he was confused about the chaos of whether the March 4 tax payments had been delayed.
Asked about tariffs on Canada and Mexico on Wednesday, Mr. Trump said they will continue to move forward – but mentioned on April 2, which he said he said he said another batch of tariffs on various countries, which he called reciprocity tariffs, would take effect.
Some investors interpreted the remarks as signs that the president intends to continue to postpone tariffs related to drugs and immigration, with the value of peso and Canadian dollars increasing. But a White House official on Wednesday clarified that the April 2 date refers to other tariffs, not those from Canada and Mexico.
“The second mutual tariff date in April will remain in full force and effect,” Trump wrote on Thursday.
vjosa isai,,,,, Natalie Kitroeff and Paulina Villegas Contribution report.
