WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Within hours of Canada's retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods took effect, the Trump administration banned the import of Canadian alcoholic spirits, dairy products, and motorbikes.
Tuesday, President Donald Trump signed five Proclamations pursuant to Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 to ban certain products from Canada and modify the scope of the tariffs on certain Canadian products previously announced on July 20.
Trump said the measures were announced to respond to Canada's additional retaliation and continued discriminatory treatment of crucial American exports.
After breaking off trade talks with the United States last month, Canada on Tuesday imposed new retaliatory tariffs on about $20 billion worth of U.S. exports, including steel, dairy, and agricultural equipment.
The import bans will take effect on September 29.
Additionally, the President has directed the U.S. Trade Representative and the Administrator of the General Services Administration to remove $50 billion worth of Canadian-origin products from GSA's Multiple Award Schedules.
The White House noted that over the past year and a half, only two countries have chosen to retaliate against U.S. tariffs rather than negotiate a deal with the United States: China and Canada.
The tit-for-tat tariff hikes are expected make imported goods to both the countries costlier.
'After weeks of good faith and intensive efforts between U.S. and Canadian negotiators, Canada walked away from a near-final trade deal that offered better treatment than any other trading partner, and instead Canada chose to embark on senseless retaliation against the United States,' U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a statement.
'On July 20, 2026, finding that the public interest will be served by his actions, President Trump took three separate Section 338 actions to level the playing field for important American exports to Canada-motor vehicles, alcoholic beverages, and dairy. Section 338 further empowers the President to exclude products from importation into the United States if a foreign country maintains or increases its discriminatory practices against U.S. commerce,' Ambassador Greer added.
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