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U.S. 25 percent tariffs (10 percent on energy resources) on all goods imported from Canada took effect March 4. The federal government has immediately applied retaliatory tariffs to $30 billion worth of American imports, with an additional $125 billion on an unspecified additional list threatened for later in the month. Trump has also announced an additional 25 percent tariff on Canadian steel and aluminum entering the U.S., meaning steel and aluminum imports would be taxed at 50 percent. Those tariffs are set to kick in March 12.
Ottawa did not immediately make clear whether the list of products subject to retaliatory tariffs would be the same as the one announced in February, prior to the one-month reprieve. However, here are the items on the list of particular interest to us:
- Floor coverings of plastics, whether or not self-adhesive, in rolls or in the form of tiles; wall or ceiling coverings of plastics;
- Self-adhesive plates, sheets, film, foil, tape, strip and other flat shapes, of plastics, whether or not in rolls;
- Baths, shower-baths, sinks and wash-basins;
- Lavatory seats and covers;
- Doors, windows and their frames and thresholds for doors;
- Pretty much all pre-cut wood products, including veneer, flooring, particle board, fibreboard, plywood, wood doors and windows, shutters, post and beams, shingles and shakes, flooring panels, glulam and engineered timber;
- Power, pneumatic, hydraulic and manual hand tools of just about all kinds;
- Fans: Table, floor, wall, window, ceiling or roof fans, with a self-contained electric motor of an output not exceeding 125W;
- Chandeliers and other electric ceiling or wall lighting fittings, excluding those of a kind used for lighting public open spaces or thoroughfares.
The full list is here.
When Trump applied 25 percent steel and aluminum tariffs in 2018, Canada responded with countervailing 25 percent tariffs on finished steel and aluminum products, including windows and doors. It is not known yet whether the same plan is in place should the U.S. tariffs come into effect March 12 as announced.
Ontario premier Doug Ford has been making appearances on U.S. media threatening cutoffs of exports of Ontario electricity and nickel and “buy Ontario” procurement policies and public awareness campaigns for the province. Quebec premier Francois Legault told CBC he will ask his Treasury Board president to draw up a plan to penalize American companies operating in Quebec.
Economists predict the tariffs, if left in place, would drive Canada into recession to the tune of a 2.6 percent drop in GDP. They would cause an estimated 1.6 percent drop in American GDP.