Associated Press
President Donald Trump said Tuesday that he will double his planned tariffs on steel and aluminum from 25% to 50% for Canada, escalating a trade war with the United States’ northern neighbor.
Trump said on social media that the increase of the tariffs set to take effect on Wednesday is a response to the price increases that the provincial government of Ontario put on electricity sold to the United States.
“I have instructed my Secretary of Commerce to add an ADDITIONAL 25% Tariff, to 50%, on all STEEL and ALUMINUM COMING INTO THE UNITED STATES FROM CANADA, ONE OF THE HIGHEST TARIFFING NATIONS ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD,” Trump posted Tuesday on Truth Social.
The U.S. President has given a variety of explanations for his antagonism of Canada, saying that his separate 25% tariffs are about fentanyl smuggling and voicing objections to Canada putting high taxes on dairy imports that penalize U.S. farmers. But he continued to call for Canada to become part of the United States as a solution, a form of taunting that has infuriated Canadian leaders.
“The only thing that makes sense is for Canada to become our cherished Fifty First State,” Trump posted on Tuesday. “This would make all Tariffs, and everything else, totally disappear.”
The U.S. stock market promptly fell following his social media post, triggering more concerns after a brutal selloff on Monday that puts Trump under pressure to show he has a legitimate plan to grow the economy instead of perhaps pushing it into a recession.
Trump was set to deliver an afternoon address to the Business Roundtable, a trade association of CEOs that during the 2024 campaign he wooed with the promise of lower corporate tax rates for domestic manufacturers. But his plans for tariffs on Canada, Mexico, China, steel, aluminum — with more to possibly come on Europe, Brazil, South Korea, pharmaceutical drugs, copper, lumber and computer chips — would amount to a massive tax hike.
The stock market’s vote of no confidence over the past two weeks puts the president in a bind between his enthusiasm for taxing imports and his brand as a politician who understands business based on his own experiences in real estate, media and marketing.
Harvard University economist Larry Summers, a former Treasury Secretary for the Bill Clinton administration, on Monday put the odds of a recession at 50-50.
“All the emphasis on tariffs and all the ambiguity and uncertainty has both chilled demand and caused prices to go up,” Summers posted on X. “We are getting the worst of both worlds — concerns about inflation and an economic downturn and more uncertainty about the future and that slows everything.”
The investment bank Goldman Sachs revised down its growth forecast for this year to 1.7% from 2.2% previously. It modestly increased its recession probability to 20% “because the White House has the option to pull back policy changes if downside risks begin to look more serious.”
Trump has tried to assure the public that his tariffs would cause a bit of a “transition” to the economy, with the taxes prodding more companies to begin the years-long process of relocating factories to the United States to avoid the tariffs. But he set off alarms in an interview broadcast on Sunday in which he didn’t rule out a possible recession.
“I hate to predict things like that,” Trump said on Fox News Channel’s “Sunday Morning Futures.” ”There is a period of transition, because what we’re doing is very big. We’re bringing wealth back to America. That’s a big thing. And there are always periods of — it takes a little time. It takes a little time. But I don’t — I think it should be great for us. I mean, I think it should be great.”
The promise of great things ahead did not eliminate anxiety, with the S&P 500 stock index tumbling 2.7% on Monday in an unmistakable Trump slump that has erased the market gains that greeted his victory in November 2024. The S&P 500 index fell roughly 0.4% in Tuesday morning trading.
The White House after the markets closed on Monday highlighted that the tariffs were prompting companies such as Honda, Volkswagen and Volvo to consider new investments in U.S. factories.
It issued a statement that Trump’s combination of tariffs, deregulations and increased energy production had led industry leaders to promise to “create thousands of new jobs.”
The significance of thousands of additional jobs was unclear, as the U.S. economy added 2.2 million jobs last year alone, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
23 comments
Linwood Wright
March 11, 2025 at 11:43 am
This incompetent fool is going to drive the US into a depression. Mark my words.
Oscar
March 11, 2025 at 11:52 am
You must be confused, Biden is no longer in office….
Impeach Musk
March 11, 2025 at 1:39 pm
Hire a clown and expect a circus I guess. We knew the consequences of electing this fool a second time. I wish we had better choices.
EarnApp
March 11, 2025 at 1:40 pm
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Oscar
March 11, 2025 at 11:53 am
Ontario threatens to cut off electricity to the US. LMAO. Be my guest. Close the border and deploy the US military. Let’s see how long Canada lasts…
Josh Green
March 11, 2025 at 12:17 pm
Oscar. You are in a cult. All Trump supporters are.
You people have suddenly turned Canada, a country that has been our best friend, ally, and trading partner for 150 years, into an enemy in like 6 weeks. And for no reason whatsoever other than your cult leader says so.
How do you honestly not see how insane and abnormal that is?
Peachy
March 11, 2025 at 12:19 pm
The cult was all of you zombies, the media, the White House staff, etc that told us Joe Biden was mentally sharp and engaged. Looks like the electronic pen was signing many documents. Who was calling the shots?
Josh Green
March 11, 2025 at 12:33 pm
And you think Trump is mentally sharp and engaged??
😂😂😂😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
That’s f*cking hysterical Peachy! Which comedy club will be performing at this weekend? I’m going to come check you out.
Josh Green
March 11, 2025 at 12:42 pm
And you didn’t even answer the f*cking question, Peach Tits, all you did was deflect and play Whataboutism.
Answer it. Why do yo suddenly want a war with Canada?
It’s because Dear Leader says so, right? And you’ve given up all of your critical thinking ability over to him?
Oscar
March 11, 2025 at 12:49 pm
Reviewed your recent posts. Let us know when you have an intelligent comment to make. You really need to get out of your parents basement more….
Impeach Musk
March 11, 2025 at 1:51 pm
“Who was calling the shots?” competent adults who understand the basics of macroeconomics. You know, those bureaucrat types who the ketamine kid and his sidekick big balls probably fired.
Oscar
March 11, 2025 at 12:46 pm
Trump is reversing decades of exploitation of American consumers by foreign powers and companies. They demand unfettered access to the largest consumer market in the world and yet refuse to do the same for their own markets. China sells billions worth of goods to Americans and buys our companies and land yet we are restricted from doing the same. Our politicians and so-called elites sold Americans out. Trump is trying to undo their malfeasance. There will be a cost to unwinding this idiocy, but it will be worth every bit.
Skeptic
March 11, 2025 at 1:48 pm
I’m not sure it is worth waiting for the delicious omelet while the eggs rot in a puddle on the floor because there is no cook, stove or pan in the kitchen.
Wendy
March 11, 2025 at 4:48 pm
Try to keep up. Trump 1 Ontario 0.
Peachy
March 11, 2025 at 12:18 pm
So mighty Canada is going to tell us how this is going down? On the other side, stocks are currently on sale. A great buying opportunity.
Josh Green
March 11, 2025 at 12:19 pm
Peachy. You are in a cult.
Why have you made Canada an enemy all of a sudden?
Be honest with yourself. It’s because Dear Leader says so, right?
Skeptic
March 11, 2025 at 1:54 pm
Peachy, that is soooo 1999. I realize the South Park hit song “Blame Canada” rocked the charts back then, but the world has moved on. BTW,, agree there will be a great buying opportunity on stocks (also bitcoin, STrump coin, NFTs and a lot of other worthless assets) when they hit bottom (which may occur prior to 2029), but meanwhile, most voters will be focused on the rising cost of living and the increase in unemployment — not sure if you lived through stagflation, but it wasn’t pretty and only the MAGA mental midgets and other assorted children yearn for those days (I assume that was when America was Great).
MarvinM
March 11, 2025 at 3:31 pm
I don’t remember your cult leader ever suggesting a down stock market was a good thing. Quite the opposite I would say.
He took credit for an up stock market while Biden was president because “he [Trump] was doing good in the polls”. Well, now that he’s actual president, why is the stock market plummeting?
And BTW, a down stock market is only a great buying opportunity for people with a level of disposable income they can invest in stocks, which leaves out most Americans from that opportunity.
Trump ran on making tips non-taxable, making overtime pay non-taxable, making Social Security payments non-taxable. Yet none of that was in the current budget bill. Only the tax cuts that benefit primarily the very wealthy are in that bill.
PeterH
March 11, 2025 at 12:20 pm
Apparently all adults have left the negotiating table.
Josh Green
March 11, 2025 at 12:23 pm
Amazing how all of sudden, in six weeks, we have a bunch of “adults” frothing at the mouth all of a sudden for a war with Canada.
What in the actual f*ck is wrong with these people?
MAGA really is a mental disorder.
Peachy
March 11, 2025 at 12:35 pm
War with Canada? They barely have a military. Hilarious.🤣
Skeptic
March 11, 2025 at 1:55 pm
Susie Wiles is a genius!
PeterH
March 11, 2025 at 3:34 pm
I’m very fortunate not to have to dip into retirement investments to pay down a mortgage. That said, since Trump took office my retirement fund has dropped by $75,000. Republicans are horrible for the American economy!