On February 1, Donald Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, with an exception for Canadian energy, which would be subject to a 10 percent tariff. The United States also imposed a 10 percent tariff on Chinese imports. In retaliation, Canada applied a 25 percent tariff on C$30 billion (US$20 billion) worth of U.S. imports, set to increase to C$155 billion after 21 days. Mexico and China both threatened countermeasures in response to the U.S. actions. Trump did not impose tariffs on EU goods, as he had previously threatened.
On February 3, Trump postponed the tariffs on Canada and Mexico by a month, just hours before they were scheduled to take effect. European leaders expressed their intent to retaliate if targeted by Trump’s tariffs.
The 10 percent additional tariffs on China came into effect on February 4. In response, China announced tariffs on U.S. goods worth approximately $14 billion and reinstated antitrust investigations into companies like Google and Nvidia.
On February 10, Trump announced a 25 percent tariff on steel and aluminum imports, effective from March 12.
On February 14, Trump unveiled a plan to impose “reciprocal” tariffs on U.S. trading partners, regardless of their status as allies or adversaries.
Trump threatened the EU with 25 percent tariffs on February 26, accusing the bloc of being formed to disadvantage the United States.
On March 4, the tariffs initially announced on February 1 against Canada, Mexico, and China came into effect. Trump doubled the tariffs on Chinese imports to 20 percent. As a countermeasure, Beijing pledged to implement 10-15 percent tariffs on U.S. agricultural products starting March 10. Canada’s countermeasures also took effect.
On March 5, Trump announced a concession, allowing carmakers compliant with the 2020 USMCA trade deal between the U.S., Canada, and Mexico to bypass the 25 percent tariffs for a month.
Further concessions were made on March 6, granting a one-month exemption to all goods from Mexico and Canada that complied with USMCA, extending until April 2, termed by Trump as “liberation day.”
On March 10, Ontario, Canada imposed a 25 percent tariff on electricity exports to three U.S. states, threatening to cut power supplies if Trump escalated further. In response, Trump doubled tariffs on Canadian steel and metals to 50 percent. Ontario and Trump both backed down the following day.
On March 12, the EU and Canada retaliated against Trump’s tariffs on steel and aluminum.
Trump announced additional 25 percent tariffs on March 24, targeting imports from countries that purchase Venezuelan oil, effective April 2.
On March 26, Trump imposed a 25 percent tariff on imports of foreign-made cars and car parts, to be enforced from April 2, alongside applicable existing tariffs. This prompted threats of retaliation from the United States’ largest trading partners.
