Trump Begins Trade War with Mexico, Canada, and China

The President of the United States, Donald Trump, signs an executive order at the White House on January 31, 2025. // Photo: EFE/Yuri Gripas/Pool

By EFE (Confidencial)

HAVANA TIMES – The President of the United States, Donald Trump, signed executive orders that immediately enforce his promised tariffs of 25% on goods from Mexico and Canada—except for Canadian oil, which will only have a 10% tariff—and 10% on Chinese goods, on top of existing tariffs.

Trump signed three separate executive orders from his private residence at Mar-a-Lago in Florida on the afternoon of Saturday, February 1, 2025, thereby fulfilling a repeatedly announced promise that could spark a trade war.

The tariffs will officially take effect at 12:01 AM on Tuesday, February 4, 2025. Trump accuses Mexico and Canada of failing to control their borders regarding migration flows and drug trafficking, particularly fentanyl, as well as benefiting from a trade surplus with the US. The unilateral tariffs pose a direct challenge to the North American free trade agreement, which has been in place for 30 years.

Shortly after the signing was made public, the White House stated that the tariffs on Canada will remain in place “until Canada cooperates with the US against drug traffickers and in border security,” a stance it also took with Mexico but with harsher accusations.

“Mexican cartels are the world’s leaders in trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other drugs. These cartels have an alliance with the Mexican government and endanger the national security and public health of the United States,” Trump stated.

Mexico Downplays the Tariffs

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated before Trump’s signing that the imposition of tariffs does not concern her because “Mexico’s economy is very strong and solid,” despite the fact that exports to the US accounted for nearly 30% of Mexico’s GDP in 2023, according to a report by the Mexican Institute for Competitiveness.

Before the Trump announcement, Sheinbaum revealed she has “a Plan A, a Plan B, and a Plan C” for when and if the tariffs would take effect. After Trump initiated the trade war on Saturday, she said retaliatory tariffs were being considered. Trump has already warned that if retaliation occurs, he will increase the tariff rates further.

As for Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada’s response in a press conference later on Saturday, including retaliatory tariffs on US exports.

On Friday, the Canadian leader had warned that the country has prepared “an immediate, determined, strong, but reasonable response” to the US tariffs.

Read more news here on Havana Times.

4 thoughts on “Trump Begins Trade War with Mexico, Canada, and China

  • less than 1% of drugs from Canada gets through our border to the US. Even US agents and Congress found this to be true. BUT look at the number of guns getting into Canada from gun crazy US. This power hungry narcissistic autocratic ignorant bully “Mr T” is the focus of our wrath not the Americans who are are supportive of us.

  • Canada should trade with Cuba a lot more, we have a lot to offer and so does Cuba, plus you have the weather and the beach. Please apply.

  • Very true. As the article title tells us: “Trump Begins Trade War with Mexico, Canada, and China.” The operative noun there is “Trump”. It is he, and he alone, perhaps with a few of his billionaire henchmen that have Canadians perplexed as to “ why”?

    The pretext that Trump uses for his draconian trade war is that Canada’s border, at least according to him, is too porous because it allows into the U. S. the drug fentanyl plus too many illegal immigrants.

    If that is the case, the Canadian government spent close to a billion dollars buying Blackhawk helicopters, hiring more border agents, and ensuring the lengthy border is not porous. Furthermore, the amount of fentanyl entering the U.S. from the northern border is a very, very minuscule amount as compared to the southern Mexican border. Nevertheless, both countries are punished equally.

    This is all a ruse. The real intention of Trump as he joked in a dinner meeting with the Canadian Prime Minister and accompanying government officials is to try and make Canada an American 51st State. At that time it was simply viewed as a joke – a Trump musing. Everyone laughed it off as exactly that – a joke.

    However, with time, and as Trump pronounced publicly his expansionist foreign policies- the military takeover of Panama and Greenland – his Canadian economic coup, now no longer a joke, seems to be coming to possible fruition.

    Not so fast – Trump: “. . . Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Canada’s response in a press conference later on Saturday, including retaliatory tariffs on US exports.” In fact, Canada will go toe to toe with Trump’s punishing tariffs. Canada will put a 25% tariff on all American products entering Canada beginning the same day the American tariffs take effect.

    Furthermore, individual Canadian provinces will be removing all American alcohol sold in provincial stores from store shelves. Canadians are encouraged to purchase products made in Canada as opposed to American made or produced items.

    The trade war is just beginning. Unfortunately, in any tariff war between countries both countries’ citizens lose economically. The prices for all products caught in the tiff-for-tat will increase leading to inflation something, ironically, Trump said will certainly decrease with him in power.

    Canadians are a resolute bunch; Canadians are not going to roll over and take punitive tariffs from a friendly neighbour and ally because of someone in the White House with a distorted dystopian world view.

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