Canada is fighting back against a 'dumb' trade war: PM Justin Trudeau

He said Canada is immediately introducing 25 per cent retaliatory tariffs on $30 billion worth of American products, and will expand them to cover another $125 billion in U.S. goods in 21 days.

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the U.S. has launched a "dumb" continental trade war and Canada is fighting back.

Addressing U.S. President Donald Trump directly at an Ottawa press conference on Tuesday, Trudeau said imposing the tariffs was "a very dumb thing to do."

He said Canada is immediately introducing 25 per cent retaliatory tariffs on $30 billion worth of American products, and will expand them to cover another $125 billion in U.S. goods in 21 days.

Trudeau also said that Canada will file claims with the World Trade Organization and through the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Free Trade Agreement to push back on the U.S. tariffs.

Trudeau said the federal government will be there to support Canadians through measures like enhancing employment insurance "no matter the cost." He did not announce specific measures to protect weakened Canadian businesses from potential takeovers.

While Trump's order imposing the tariffs cites national security concerns about drugs and illegal immigration at the Canadian border, Trump said in a post today on Truth Social that if companies move to the U.S., they won't face the tariffs.

The president's executive order hitting Canada and Mexico with 25 per cent across-the-board tariffs, with a lower 10 per cent levy on Canadian energy, took effect at 12:01 a.m. ET.

"Tariffs, 25 per cent on Canada and 25 per cent on Mexico, and that’ll start,” Trump said Monday at the White House, sparking an immediate response from Wall Street. "They’re going to have to have a tariff."

Stock markets in Canada and the U.S. fell at the start of trading Tuesday, continuing the plunge that began late Monday after the U.S. confirmed tariffs were coming.

The S&P/TSX composite index was down 386.72 points at 24,614.85 in early trading.

In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 409.58 points at 42,781.66. The S&P 500 index was down 40.78 points at 5,808.94, while the Nasdaq composite was down 95.81 points at 18,254.38.

Trudeau said that he will be meeting with the premiers Tuesday afternoon to talk about potential non-tariff responses. Trudeau said some provinces are looking at blocking American companies from bidding on publicly funded contracts.

He did not mention a proposal from Ontario Premier Doug Ford to shut down electricity exports to the U.S.

Canadian officials and premiers made a month-long diplomatic push in Washington after Trump originally signed the executive order, which tied the duties to the illegal flow of people and drugs across the northern border.

Trudeau said that Canada's response to border and fentanyl concerns was "well received" by American officials and now Trump is ignoring his own justification for the tariffs.

Trudeau said that Trump has not hidden his desire to use the tariffs as a means to crush the Canadian economy and annex Canada. The prime minister said that Canada is ready to fight and win.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection data shows the number of people and drugs crossing illegally into the United States from Canada is minuscule compared to the volume coming across the southern border. It reports just 13.6 grams of fentanyl seized by northern Border Patrol staff in January.

Trump previously said the delay would allow time for an "economic" deal and on Monday suggested Canada and Mexico should "build their car plants, frankly, and other things in the United States, in which case you have no tariffs."

Trump said he also plans to implement 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports coming into the U.S. on Mar. 12. These duties would be on top of any existing tariffs.

— With files from Kelly Malone in Washington, Lauren Krugel in Calgary and The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 4, 2025.

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