President Donald Trump signed three executive orders implementing wide-ranging tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China on Saturday, marking the beginning of a potential trade war with the nation’s top commercial partners.
Canadian and Mexican goods exported to the United States will face a 25% tariff, while Canadian energy resources will face a 10% tariff, and China will face a 10% tariff, according to White House officials.
The tariffs are in addition to other tariffs and there are no exclusions.
The two North American allies are critical suppliers of agricultural goods to the U.S. The tariffs could increase grocery prices for Americans, a stark contrast from Trump’s campaign promise to bring down high costs.
The president blamed the influx of illegal drugs, particularly fentanyl, and migrants entering the nation illegally across the northern and southern borders as reasons for the tariffs.
A White House fact sheet claims this “constitutes a national emergency under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).”
Officials said several issues will need to be addressed before the tariffs are lifted from the three nations.
“The bottom line is, the best metric will be Americans stop dying from Made in China, distributed by Mexico and Canada, fentanyl,” a White House official said. “And we’ll track those metrics very carefully. We’ll be able to see how much is being recovered at the border.”
Officials also said this represents a border security issue, a key topic that Trump has handled swiftly after being sworn in as president. Through executive order Trump previously declared the southern border a national emergency.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also previewed the tariffs during her second briefing on Friday, where she blamed “the illegal fentanyl that they have sourced and allowed to distribute into our country, which has killed tens of millions of Americans.”
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Canada, Mexico, and China are likely to hit back with their own retaliatory tariffs against the U.S. but White House officials deflected the potential consequences.
“Importantly, there is a retaliation clause so that if any country chooses to retaliate in any way, the signal will be to take further action with respect to likely increased tariffs,” a U.S. official said.