Trump's tariffs on Canada, China, Mexico take effect — countries respond
President Trump is carrying out his previously announced plans to impose sweeping tariffs on imports Canada, Mexico and China — and all three countries are hitting back.
In a series of executive orders, Trump enacted a 25% tariff on nearly all goods coming to the U.S. from Canada and all products being imported from Mexico. The president also doubled the tariff he imposed last month on Chinese products to 20%.
In response, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Canada would impose tariffs on more than $100 billion of American goods over the course of 21 days. In a LinkedIn post, Per Bank, CEO and president of Canadian grocery giant Loblaw Cos., said that Loblaw is looking to secure new local food suppliers, and has onboarded 30 Canadian suppliers this year so far. It is also looking to secure alternative sourcing options for U.S. goods.
In other actions. the Liquor Control Board of Ontario will stop buying and selling American alcohol immediately. The LCBO is the sole purchaser for all American alcohol across Ontario (Canada's second largest province) and imports $965 million worth of alcohol annually, with more than 3,600 U.S. products from 36 states on its shelves, reported The Albertan.
Claudia Sheinbaum, the president of Mexico, said her country will respond with its own retaliatory tariffs, with the moves to be announced on Sunday.
China responded with tariffs of up to 15% on a wide array of U.S. agricultural goods. It also expanded the number of U.S. companies subject to export controls and other restrictions by about two dozen.
U.S. tariffs are at their highest level since 1943, according to Yale's Budget Lab.
READ MORE: NRF, RILA urge negotiations with Mexico and Canada, not tariffs
In his executive orders, Trump said the flow of illegal drugs from all three of those countries requires tariffs to force their governments to take stronger action to stop narcotics smuggling into the U.S. However, since September, nearly all fentanyl seized by the U.S. came through the Southern border with Mexico, according to the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), reported ABC News. Less than 1% of fentanyl was seized at the Northern border with Canada, CBP found.
Trump also previously announced that a plan to apply reciprocal tariffs on imports that equal any tariffs or other levies put on those products from the U.S. by other countries is still scheduled to go into effect Wednesday, April 2, 2025.
In commentary sent to Chain Store Age, Duleep Rodrigo, KPMG U.S. Consumer and Retail Sector Leader, stated the newly imposed tariffs will introduce additional cost and margin pressures for retailers on a wide range of consumer products.
“As import fees rise, some companies are likely to pass those costs on to consumers," Rodrigo said. "While retailers may adjust sourcing or pricing strategies to mitigate the impact, many will have limited ability to fully shield consumers.
"The extent of any price changes will depend on factors like supply chain flexibility, competitive dynamics, and consumer demand," concluded Rodrigo. "In this complex shifting environment, companies must balance near-term pricing decisions with long-term strategic planning to maintain stability and sustain profitability."
Tariff plans go through changes
U.S. tariffs have undergone a number of twists and turns since Trump first signed an executive order placing a 25% tariff on nearly all goods coming into the U.S. from Canada, effective Feb. 4, as well as a 10% tariff on imports from China.
While the order also called for a 25% tariff on all Mexican goods, it was delayed for one month to allow for negotiations. On Feb. 3, the Trump Administration also paused the implementation of a planned 25% tariff on imports from Canada for 30 days as negotiations on a border deal took place.
In total, the U.S. does about $1.6 trillion in annual business with the three countries, which account for more than a third of the goods and services that are imported to or bought from the United States and are this country's largest trading partners.
In other tariff-related developments, the Trump Administration briefly excluded shipments from China from the de minimis exception, which exempts imported shipments with an aggregate value of less than $800 from having to pay tariffs but then reverted to the same eligibility requirements for Chinese goods that had been in place since September 2024.
[READ MORE: Trump restores tariff loophole used by used by low-cost shopping apps]