President Trump confirmed Thursday that tariffs against Canada and Mexico, which he had threatened and then delayed, will go into effect next week, while China will face higher tariffs as part of a crackdown on fentanyl.
“Drugs continue to pour into our country from Mexico and Canada at alarmingly high and unacceptable levels. “A large percentage of these drugs, many of them in the form of Fentanyl, are manufactured and supplied by China,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“We cannot allow this scourge to continue to harm the USA, and therefore, until it stops, or is seriously limited, the proposed TARIFFS scheduled to go into effect on MARCH FOURTH will, indeed, go into effect, as scheduled,” Mr. Trump said. “China will likewise be charged an additional 10% Tariff on that date.”
The president signed off on 25% tariffs on Mexican and Canadian imports earlier this month, but they were delayed for a month after those two countries took steps to combat the flow of drugs across the border.
Trump had been vague in recent days about whether the tariffs would go into effect on Tuesday as planned, but his Truth Social post made it clear that they would. It is unclear whether Canada or Mexico can take additional steps to appease Trump and avoid tariffs, which experts warn would be detrimental to all three North American economies.
While Trump delayed the initial tariffs on Canada and Mexico, he imposed a 10% tariff on Chinese imports due to the issue of fentanyl production. China responded with retaliatory tariffs on US goods.
Trump has also threatened reciprocal tariffs on imports from all nations that impose tariffs on US goods, which are set to go into effect in early April. He has also proposed imposing tariffs on automobile imports, lumber, pharmaceuticals, and other goods.
Experts have repeatedly warned that tariffs could raise prices for US consumers. Trump has acknowledged that tariffs may cause short-term pain for Americans, but argues that they will encourage companies to do more business in the United States.
