Canada, United States Make Strides Toward Trade Agreement But Tariffs On Metals Remain

On Friday, Aug. 22 Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that his government would lift its recently imposed 25 percent tariffs on goods covered by the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The new policy, which will apply to about $21 billion in U.S. imports to Canada including consumer goods like orange juice, peanut butter, wine, spirits, beer, appliances and motorcycles, will take effect Sept. 1, 2025.

The decision will not affect steel, aluminum, and automobile imports, however. Tariffs on those goods will remain in place.

Prime Minister Carney’s decision to lift the penalties came one day after he and U.S. President Donald Trump reopened negotiations regarding a trade agreement between the two nations. Prime Minister Carney’s office called that telephone conversation was “productive and wide-ranging” and, as CNBC reported, in a press conference last Friday the prime minister said President Trump assured him that dropping retaliatory tariffs would kick-start negotiations between the two countries.

In remarks in the Oval Office the same day, President Trump also struck an optimistic tone. “We had a very good call,” President Trump said. “We are working on something. We want to be very good to Canada. I like Carney a lot. I think he’s a very good person. … I am fighting for the United States, and Canada and Mexico have taken a lot of our business over the years.” National Public Radio has more information.